Fraggle-Napped
by Erin T. Aardvark
Summary: Wembley is kidnapped by two con artist Fraggles who want him to dig precious gems out of a cave for them, as he is the only Fraggle small enough to get in and out of the holes there.
1. Felonious and Fink Fraggle

_AUTHOR'S NOTE: Just the general disclaimer bit. Fraggle Rock and all it's characters belong to Jim Henson. Felonious, Fink, Cerise, Darcy, and Wini (though Darcy and Wini are only mentioned and not seen) belong to me. Some of the locations in the Rock I got from either the animated "Fraggle Rock," or the books. Gemstone Grotto and Splashdown Summit are my own ideas. Premulosse extract is something I got from a plant name generator._

* * *

There are many caves and tunnels in Fraggle Rock. The Crystal Caverns, Belching Boulder, Blue Rock, the Echo Hole, and the Cave of Shadows, just to name a few. There were many places that either Gobo or Traveling Matt had been to, and still others that hadn't been discovered yet. One of these caves was known as Gemstone Grotto, because it was rumored that there were precious gems at the bottom of the holes in the cave. This is what brought two Fraggles, Felonious and Fink, to Gemstone Grotto. Felonious was a pale yellow Fraggle with gold-colored fur and brown hair and a mustache. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt under a black vest, and a black fedora. Fink was teal-colored, with darker teal fur, and purple hair, and wore a dark blue turtleneck sweater and a black bowler. They were a couple of con artists. Their biggest scam was selling what Felonious called "Dr. Felonious Fraggle's All Purpose Cure All Moss Oil," which was worthless. The World's Oldest Fraggle banished them from Fraggle Rock forever years ago, and they hadn't been back since. They didn't want to take chances.

That day at Gemstone Grotto, Fink was reaching into one of the holes as far as he could, while Felonious was watching him.

"No good, boss," Fink said, straining. "I can't reach the gems from here."

"I know they're in there!" Felonious shouted. "Any idiot can see them if you look into any of these holes!"

"Yeah, they're just too far down to reach without gettin' in the hole."

"Well, there's only one thing left to do."

"What's that, boss?"

"Get down there and bring 'em up!"

Felonious gave his partner's rear end a kick, sending him down into the hole. Unfortunately, he was too big to fit, and wound up getting stuck in it.

"Hey, boss!" Fink shouted. "I'm stuck! Get me outta here!"

"Can ya reach the gems?" Felonious asked.

"No! They're still too far away! Come on, boss, get me outta here!"

Felonious groaned, grabbed Fink by the ankles, and pulled as hard as he could, until Fink popped out. Felonious dropped him unceremoniously, and inspected the hole. The opening in the floor was big enough for him and Fink to fit through, but then it tapered into a smaller hole.

"No way either of us can fit through that," Felonious said. "And no way we can lower a bucket down there to scoop up the gems, either. We'd scoop up more sand than stones."

"I got an idea, boss!" Fink shouted. "Maybe we could use the shovel and the pickaxe we stole to dig up the gems, and use them to make the hole bigger!"

"Are you implying that we should actually —ugh! — _work_?!" Felonious shouted. "Are you out of your mind?!"

"Well, how else are we gonna get the gems?"

Felonious stroked his mustache, and thought over the situation. While he was thinking, he heard something in the distance. It sounded like singing. He looked toward the direction of the sound, and found three Fraggles coming his way.

"Let's am-scray," he said to Fink. "We've got Fraggles coming."

"Right, boss," Fink said, and he and Felonious ducked out of sight.

The three Fraggles that were coming into Gemstone Grotto were Gobo, Red, and Wembley. Gobo had found one of his uncle's maps that lead to it, and decided to map it out, and he thought he'd have a picnic there. Red and Wembley were game, but Mokey and Boober decided to bail out. Mokey was headed for Brushplant Cave to stock up on paintbrushes, and Boober did not want to face an unknown cave. You never know what kind of germs could be lurking there.

"Look at all these holes in the walls!" Red shouted, while bouncing a ball. "There must be a lot of Burrow Beasts around!"

"Wow!" Gobo shouted, looking into one of the holes. "Hey, you guys should check this out!"

"What is it, Gobo?" Wembley asked.

"There's lots of shiny rocks inside these holes!" Gobo shouted.

"Oooh yeah!" Red shouted, looking into another hole.

"Wowee!" Wembley shouted, as he looked into a hole himself. "There must be a squintillion of them in here!"

"Too bad you can't reach them from here," Red said.

"Oh well," Gobo said, marking the information down on the map. "Maybe it's a good thing you can't reach them. If somebody could reach them, they might take them all, and there wouldn't be any for others to see, eh?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Red said. "Come on, Wembley. Let's play Boink Ball while Gobo maps."

"Okay, Red!" Wembley shouted.

Red took her ball, threw it up into the air, and bounced it against her head. Wembley positioned himself underneath it, and hit it with his head. That was the object of Boink Ball. You had to boink it with your head back and forth, without using hands, until a Fraggle missed it. Since Red was taller, and more athletic (and extremely competitive), she gave the ball a good boink, and it sailed directly over Wembley's head.

"Oops!" he shouted, as he jumped.

"I win!" Red shouted, happily.

"We'd better go get that ball before it falls into one of the holes," Gobo said.

"I'll go get it!" Wembley called, and ran in the direction the ball had flown.

Felonious and Fink had been watching the three Fraggles during this whole thing, waiting impatiently for them to leave so they could figure out how to harvest those gems. Red's ball hit the wall next to them and bounced into one of the holes.

"Oh great," Felonious groaned. "They'll be coming our way any minute!"

"Let's get outta here before they see us, boss," Fink said, and he started to run off. Felonious was about to follow him, when he saw Wembley approach where the ball had disappeared.

"Hold it a sec," Felonious said quietly, grabbing Fink's shoulder.

"What for?" Fink asked.

"Shhh!" Felonious hissed, and watched Wembley look around for the ball.

"I know it came this way," the green Fraggle said, looking around the cave. "But where did it go? Maybe it rolled into one of these holes in the wall. I'd better check!"

Immediately Wembley began checking the holes. Sure enough, he saw the ball inside the gem caves, and immediately crawled into the hole the ball had gone into.

"Wow!" he shouted, looking around. The gems were reflecting the light that was coming in, turning the cave walls a rainbow of colors.

"Wembley!" Gobo called. "Where are you, eh?"

"In here, Gobo!" Wembley shouted. "Inside the caves with the shiny rocks in them!"

"How in the Rock did you get in there?!" Gobo shouted, looking into another hole in the wall.

"I climbed in," Wembley said, shrugging.

"Think you can climb back out?" Red asked.

"Sure!" Wembley shouted. He rolled the ball toward the hole where he heard Red and Gobo's voices, and then crawled out of it easily.

"You guys should see it in there!" Wembley shouted. "It's incredible! It's even more incredible than looking through the holes in the wall! I was all kinds of rainbow colors!"

"Stand back!" Red shouted. "I'm going in!"

Immediately, Red tried to climb through the hole in the wall, but she was too big to fit through, and wound up getting stuck.

"Hey! Get me out of here!" she shouted.

"Time to cut down on the radish bars, Red," Gobo said as he and Wembley took hold of the pigtailed Fraggle's legs.

"Very funny!" Red shouted, sarcastically.

Gobo and Wembley pulled as hard as they could, and managed to yank Red out of the hole in the wall, but all three of them wound up falling to the ground, thanks to the momentum.

"You want to try getting in there?" Red asked.

"No way," Gobo said, inspecting the holes. "I'm bigger than you are, Red. If you can't get through, there's no way I can get through!"

"Then how come Wembley got through?" Red asked.

"Because he's smaller than the two of us," Gobo explained.

"Oh," Red said. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense. You might be the only Fraggle who can fit in there, Wembley."

"Did you hear that, Fink?" Felonious asked. "That little green Fraggle can fit in these caves easily!"

"So?" Fink asked.

"So we can use him to get us those gems, knucklehead!" Felonious shouted, hitting Fink on the head with his fist, practically flattening his bowler. "We just have to wait for the right moment."

"Won't they recognize us if they see us?"

"I doubt it. These Fraggles look too young to remember when ol' Woffy had us banished."

"Ol' Woffy? Who's ol' Woffy?"

"The World's Oldest Fraggle, stupid!"

Felonious bopped his flunky in the head again, and the two continued watching the three Fraggles. Gobo was still mapping out the place, while Red and Wembley played another round of Boink Ball. Once again, Red had boinked the ball pretty hard, and it sailed over Wembley's head. Wembley sighed, and ran off to retrieve it, hoping that it didn't go into another hole in the wall. This time, it bounced against the wall, and Felonious managed to catch it on the rebound.

"Now's our chance," he said, and he stepped out into the light, just as Wembley came running by.

"Hello there, little Fraggle," he said. "Is this your ball?"

"Actually, it's my friend, Red's," Wembley said. "We were playing Boink Ball, and she boinked it too hard. Thanks for catching it, though."

"No problem at all," Felonious said, handing the ball to Wembley. "Listen, I was wondering if you could do me a little favor."

"Okay," Wembley said. "What is it?"

"My friend and I had our pet thimble bug with me, but he ran off when I bent down to pick up your ball. I think he might have crawled into that hole over there, and my friend and I can't fit down there to look. You look like you're small enough to go down there. Think maybe you could take a look?"

Before Wembley could respond, Red ran up to the trio.

"Wembley, what's taking so long?" she asked, sounding impatient.

"Sorry, Red," Wembley said, as he handed Red her ball. "But these two Fraggles lost their pet thimble bug, and they wants me to help find it."

"They do, huh?" Red asked, looking at Felonious and Fink suspiciously. She was beginning to get a nervous feeling in her stomach.

"It won't take long," Felonious said, putting his hand on Wembley's shoulder. "So why don't you just take your little ball, and go play? Don't worry, we'll make sure your little friend is all right."

"Yeah," Fink said, putting his hand on Wembley's other shoulder. "Sure we will."

Red didn't waste any time. She immediately grabbed Wembley's hand, and began running in the opposite direction as fast as she could.

"I'm sorry, but he can't help you today!" she called over her shoulder. "We have to go now! Come on, Wembley! Gobo's waiting for us. Time to go home!"

Felonious growled as he watched Red and Wembley regroup with Gobo and leave the grotto.

"Darn it!" he shouted.

"What do we do now, boss?" Fink asked.

"Follow them back to Fraggle Rock," Felonious said. "Then wait until he's alone. I'll get my hands on that little Fraggle one way or another!"


	2. Red's Feelings

On the way back to Fraggle Rock, Wembley began chasing after a flutterbug, while Red told Gobo about the two strange Fraggles she and Wembley met.

"I don't know why, but they made me nervous," she said, keeping an eye on Wembley, making sure he didn't go too far ahead of her and Gobo.

"They were probably harmless," Gobo said. "Have you ever seen them before?"

"No," Red said. "But I didn't like how both of them put their hands on Wembley's shoulders like they did, and then told me to go. Seriously, Gobo, I got this funny feeling in my stomach when I saw them do that. It was like they had something evil planned."

"I think you're just imagining things, Red. There's no such thing as an evil Fraggle!"

Red thought that one over. She figured Gobo was probably right, but she still wasn't too sure.

The next day, the Fraggle Five were off to Yellow Cavern for a picnic, though Red just couldn't shake the nervous feeling she was getting all of a sudden.

"Red, are you all right?" Mokey asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Red said. "I just have this funny feeling in my stomach, that's all."

"I keep telling you not to eat so many radish bars," Boober said. "You know what they can do to you! They make you jittery, and then they make you tired, then they rot your teeth, and make your tail swell, and give you stomach aches, and you break out in a rash, and . . . ."

"Oh come off it, Boober!" Red shouted. "That's not what I mean! I mean, I don't think we should go to Yellow Cavern. Maybe we should go climb the Curlicue Chimneys instead. There's a great picnic spot up at the top there!"

"But I _hate_ climbing up there!" Boober whined. "It's too far up to the top, and it makes me dizzy since the path ways are spiraled!"

"Besides, we haven't been to Yellow Cavern in ages," Mokey said. "And it's the perfect day for a picnic there!"

"Well . . . . well I don't think so!" Red shouted. "It's the perfect day for a picnic at the top of Curlicue Chimneys! Come on, guys, let's go there instead!"

"Now wait a minute!" Gobo shouted. "I thought we all decided back at the Great Hall what we were going to do today, and we all agreed to go to Yellow Cavern!"

"Yeah, it took me forever just to make up my mind!" Wembley shouted.

"I know, and I'm sorry," Red said. "But . . . . but I just got this feeling, if we go to Yellow Cavern, something bad might happen!"

"Red, that's silly!" Mokey shouted. "You don't get feelings like that!"

"Yeah, that sounds like something Boober would say!" Wembley shouted.

"That's a funny thought," Gobo said with a chuckle. "Red's turning into Boober."

"I am not!" Red shouted. "It's just . . . . I mean . . . ."

"Come on, Red," Gobo said. "You don't _really_ want to turn into Boober, do you?"

Red realized Gobo had a point, and then shuddered at the thought of turning into Boober. But she still couldn't shake that feeling that something was wrong about this trip. Once the five Fraggles reached Yellow Cavern, they set up their picnic. After some radish sandwiches, Doozer sticks, and radish pie, they began to do their own activities. Boober began cleaning up the picnic area, Mokey sat and thought up poetry, Gobo and Red began a game of Thwack-A-Ball, and Wembley stood there.

"What's the matter, Wembley?" Mokey asked.

"I can't decide what I want to do," Wembley said. "As usual. Boober doesn't like me to help him clean, I'm not good at poetry, and I'm not very good at Thwack-A-Ball, either."

"Well, why don't you take a walk?"

"Okay, Mokey. See you later!"

And with that, Wembley ran off down a path, grunting a little like he usually did. Mokey sighed, and went back to thinking about poetry.

While Wembley was dancing along down the path, singing one of his little nonsense songs, Felonious and Fink arrived on the scene, from the opposite direction.

"Good, he's alone," Felonious said. "Now's our chance."

Felonious walked down the path, acting nonchalant, and stepped right in front of Wembley.

"Well, well, well," he said. "If it isn't the little Fraggle I saw at Gemstone Grotto yesterday."

"Hi," Wembley said. "What are you doing out here?"

"Looking for you. I have a little something for you, to thank you for offering to help us yesterday. I've got an entire wagon full of all kinds of radish candy. Why don't you come with me, and we'll go get it."

Wembley contemplated taking Felonious's offer, but he wasn't so sure if he should.

"I'd like to," he said. "But I don't think I should go. I don't know how far away it is, and my friends will be waiting for me."

"Oh it's not far at all," Felonious said. "Listen, I have a great idea. Why don't you come with me, and you can pick out some candy from my wagon, and bring it to your friends, and surprise them with it."

"Well . . . ." Wembley said, a little hesitantly.

While Wembley was trying to make up his mind whether or not to accept Felonious's offer, Red and Gobo were walking over to Mokey, arguing about their Thwack-A-Ball game.

"I won fair and square, and you know it!" Gobo shouted.

"You did not!" Red shouted. "That last thwack didn't even come near the target! I demand a rematch!"

"Name the time and the place!" Gobo shouted. "I'll be there!"

"Oh now, really, you two," Mokey said. "It was just a game! I don't understand how you two can be so competitive all the time!"

"Me neither," Boober said. "I also don't understand how you can think something involving the word 'thwack' can be fun. Sounds like a good way to get hurt!"

"Well, we'd better start heading back for home," Gobo said. "Where's Wembley?"

"Oh, he went off down one of the paths," Mokey said.

"By himself?" Red asked, beginning to feel nervous. "Which way did he go?!"

"That way," Mokey said, pointing. "Why?"

Red took off down the path, not bothering to answer Mokey's question. Mokey and Boober stared after her, like she was crazy.

"What's with her?" Boober asked. "You'd think she saw a germ or something."

Gobo shrugged, and began to help Boober pack up everything in their picnic basket.

Red spotted Wembley almost right away down the path. Felonious was still trying to entice him with the promise of radish candy, and Wembley was still trying to make a decision.

"I guess it would be okay to go with you," Wembley said, finally. "As long as we don't take too long, because my friends will be waiting for me."

"Oh it won't take long at all," Felonious said. "I promise, we'll be finished in no time at all."

"WEMBLEY!" Red shrieked, and raced over toward the green Fraggle. She grabbed Wembley by the shoulder, and pushed him behind her, away from Felonious.

"Hi, Red," Wembley said. "I'm glad you're here! This nice Fraggle said if I went with him, he'd let me take some radish candy from him and back to you and Gobo and Mokey and Boober! Isn't that great?"

"Yeah, great, Wembley, just great," Red said, taking Wembley's hand and practically squeezing it. "But you can't go with him."

"Why not?"

"Because it's time to go home now."

"Awww, but Re- _ed_ . . . ."

"No, buts, now come on!"

"Aw, gee, I really wanted some of that radish candy."

"When we get back to Fraggle Rock, we'll ask Boober to make some rutabaga cupcakes."

"Okay!"

And with that, Red practically ran off, leaving Felonious in the dust. Felonious growled, gnashed his teeth, and clenched his fists.

"Didn't go so well, huh, boss?" Fink asked. Felonious answered by giving Fink a bop on the head with his fist.

"That darn girl," he grumbled. "She keeps getting in the way! If it weren't for her, I'd be rich by now."

"Maybe we oughta forget it," Fink said. "I mean, there's no way we're gonna get that little green Fraggle."

"Oh yes there is. I just need some time to think."

Felonious and Fink then decided to head back to their camp to figure out their next plan. By that time, Red and Wembley returned to the others.

"Oh there you are," Gobo said. "Where were you?"

"Gobo, they were back," Red said.

"Who were back?" Gobo asked.

"Those two strange Fraggles I saw Wembley talking to yesterday!" Red shouted, sounding a bit frustrated.

"Oh yeah, the ones you had a bad feeling about," Gobo said.

"What do you mean 'strange Fraggles,' Red?" Mokey asked. "What's going on?"

"Strange Fraggles?" Boober asked. "You mean there are strange Fraggles in Fraggle Rock?! Oh no!"

"It's nothing," Gobo said. "Red just saw Wembley talking to some unfamiliar Fraggles, and now she's blowing things out of proportion."

"Yeah, they're really nice," Wembley said. "One of them was gonna give me some radish candy if I went with him."

" _WHAT_?!" Boober shouted. "You were about to take candy from a _stranger_?! Oh, Wembley, Wembley, _Wem_ bley! Don't you know how _dangerous_ that is?!"

"But he seemed nice," Wembley said. "What's wrong with that?"

"He may seem nice, Wembley," Red said, "but he could also be bad! My mother told me a million times never to take anything from a stranger."

"But he was a Fraggle," Wembley said, shrugging. "And all Fraggles are nice. Aren't they?"

"Most Fraggles are," Gobo said, "and there are some that aren't so nice."

"And some can be downright evil," Red said.

"Red, really!" Mokey shouted. "I don't think there's any such thing as an evil Fraggle."

"Then explain Marlon," Red said.

"Oh come on, Red!" Gobo shouted. "Marlon's not evil! Sneaky and underhanded, maybe, but not evil!"

"Come on, everybody," Mokey said. "Let's go home, and forget about strange Fraggles, okay?"

"Okay," Red said, taking Wembley's hand.

"Red, I don't think it's necessary to hold Wembley's hand on the way back to Fraggle Rock," Gobo said.

"Yeah, Red," Wembley agreed. "It's not necessary!"

"I know," Red said. "But it'll make me feel better if I know where Wembley is on the way back."

"Yeah, Gobo," Wembley said. "It makes her feel better!"

"You can never be too careful," Boober said. "My mother always told me to beware of strange Fraggles bearing gifts! You never know what kind of germs they may hold!"

Gobo groaned and rolled his eyes. He thought Red was being ridiculous about the entire thing.


	3. A Successful Fraggle-Napping

When Felonious and Fink returned to their camp, Felonious began pacing back and forth, stroking his mustache. Fink walked over to a wagon, and pulled a bottle out from the back of it.

"I think we should forget the whole thing, boss," he said. "You know, forget Gemstone Grotto and go back to the moss oil bit. There have got to be plenty of Fraggles at the Rock who won't know us!"

"That's what got us kicked out of Fraggle Rock in the first place, numbskull!" Felonious shouted, bopping Fink on the head. "I ain't about to risk ol' Woffy seeing us."

"Maybe he won't remember us."

"Oh, he'll remember us, all right. You can't forget a couple of Fraggles who traded five hundred radishes for that stuff, especially after what happened when they all used it! No, if we want those gems, we've _got_ to get that little green Fraggle! He's the only one who can fit into those caves!"

"But after what happened today, that Red girl probably won't let him out of her sight."

"Then we'll just have to keep an eye on the both of them. She'll have to leave him alone some time. And when she does, that's when we'll make our move! And this time, we'll take the wagon in order to make a fast get away."

Felonious began laughing, and Fink joined in.

The next morning, Red and Wembley were at the Fraggle Pond. Red was teaching a swimming class, and she insisted Wembley join it. Fink had been right about one thing. Since the day before, Red wasn't going to let Wembley out of her sight. Ever since they woke up, Red had been watching Wembley like a hawk. Gobo thought she was being ridiculous.

"She barged into our cave this morning, and just announced that she and Wembley were going to spend the entire day together," he said to Boober and Mokey. "I tell ya, Red's gone completely overboard about this!"

"Oh, I don't think so," Boober said. "You can never be too careful when it comes to strangers. And you know how trusting and impressionable Wembley is, after all."

"Yeah, I know," Gobo said. "But he _doesn't_ need a full-time baby-sitter!"

"I think it's nice that Red's being so protective," Mokey said. "It shows a lot of compassion."

"Compassion my foot," Gobo said. "She's just being paranoid."

"I find a little paranoia is good for you," Boober said.

"Well I don't!" Gobo shouted, and he stormed over to the pond.

"He really should learn to relax," Boober said, with a sigh. "A nice, healthy dose of paranoia is a good thing, believe me, Mokey. After all, paranoia keeps you safe from bad things like Gorgs, evil Fraggles, and germs."

"If you say so, Boober," Mokey said, shrugging.

By this time, Red's class was dismissed. She threw Wembley a towel so he could dry off.

"Wasn't that great, Wembley?" she asked. "Isn't it fun spending the entire day together? What should we do next?"

"Gee, I don't know, Red," Wembley said, shrugging.

"Well, let's see," Red said, thoughtfully. "We could play Boink Ball, or we could play Thwack-A-Ball, or we could play Tug-of-Tails . . . . ."

"Or you could stop trying to be Wembley's nursemaid," Gobo said. "Seriously, Red, you really are turning into Boober! The way you're smothering Wembley like this . . . ."

"I am _not_!" Red shouted. "Am I smothering you, Wembley?"

"No," Wembley said. "Well, maybe, kinda. Just a little bit, though. But that's okay, Red, I don't mind it! Well, not a lot, anyway. I mean . . . ."

" _Wem_ bley!" Gobo shouted, exasperated. Then he sighed. "Look, Red, you seriously need to stop this!"

"I'm just trying to protect him!" Red argued. "Didn't you realize both times I saw those two strange Fraggles, they were only talking to Wembley? They were up to something, I know it!"

Gobo heaved another sigh. Red was beginning to drive him crazy. She was starting to sound worse than Boober, in his opinion.

"Okay," Gobo said, taking a deep breath before he lost it completely. "Okay, Red. Let's forget all about those two big, mean, bad Fraggles, okay? Why don't you and I go to Splashdown Summit? You can dive in the waterfall there. And don't worry about Wembley. He's a big Fraggle now. He can take care of himself, can't you Wembley?"

"Sure," Wembley said.

"Well . . . ." Red said, thoughtfully. "Okay, I guess. Just promise you won't talk to any more strange Fraggles, okay, Wembley?"

"Okay, Red," Wembley said. "I promise."

"Good," Red said, and she followed Gobo out of the Great Hall.

At the time, Felonious and Fink were hiding behind a couple of rocks, out of sight of the Fraggles in the Great Hall, but within hearing distance. They continued watching for awhile, waiting for Wembley to leave the Great Hall so they could make their move. He finally did after a few more minutes. He was going down to Roaring Ravine to look for rollies. Immediately, Felonious and Fink got to their wagon, and Fink pedaled it as fast as he could, in order to get ahead of Wembley before he could get to Roaring Ravine.

"There he is," Felonious said. "Now let me do all the talking."

"Right, boss," Fink said.

Wembley wasn't paying attention to anything going on around him. He just danced along the path, singing to himself, when Felonious and Fink drove their wagon up next to him.

"Hey, kid," Felonious said. "Your name's Wembley, right?"

At first Wembley didn't answer, considering he had promised Red he wouldn't talk to any more strange Fraggles. But he had seen this Fraggle twice before, and that didn't make him a strange Fraggle. After all, this Fraggle knew Wembley's name. The little green Fraggle decided that it must have been okay to talk to him.

"Yeah," he said, finally. "Why?"

"It's your friend, Red," Felonious said. "On the way to Splashdown Summit, she fell off a ridge, and she's badly hurt."

"She is?" Wembley asked. "Oh no! But wasn't Gobo there with her? He and Red went down there together."

"Yeah, he was with her," Felonious said, quickly. "He sent us to come get you. Come on, we've gotta hurry!"

"Right!" Wembley shouted, and jumped onto the wagon next to Felonious. Immediately, Fink pedaled as fast as he could.

Meanwhile, Gobo and Red were walking along the path toward Splashdown Summit, still arguing about the two strange Fraggles.

"Why are you so certain these two Fraggles are up to no good?" Gobo asked.

"I've just got this funny feeling, that's all!" Red shouted. "I've never seen them in the Rock before!"

"There are tons of Fraggles in the Rock we've never met before. Lou was a total stranger to Wembley when they first met, remember?"

"Yeah, but we've seen her about a dozen times _before_ we knew who she was! And there are tons of Fraggles I've seen at the Rock and I don't know who they are, either, but none of them give me this icky feeling in my stomach like these two did!"

Gobo was about to answer, when a strange wagon suddenly zoomed by them, leaving behind a cloud of dust, causing them to choke.

"Wow!" Gobo shouted, coughing. "Whoever that was sure was in a hurry, eh?"

"Yeah," Red said, waving the dust out of her face. "Who was that, anyway?"

It was Felonious and Fink. They didn't notice the two Fraggles they just whizzed past, but Wembley did.

"Wait a minute!" he shouted. "That was Red and Gobo right there! And Red didn't look hurt at all! I better make sure make sure she's all right. You can let me off here."

Felonious said nothing, and Fink kept right on pedaling. Wembley looked at Felonious, feeling a little confused.

"Hey, didn't you hear me?" he asked. "I said I want to get off and see if Red's okay! We just passed her! Didn't you see her?"

Once more, neither Felonious nor Fink responded. Wembley was beginning to get nervous. It was obvious to him that Felonious and Fink weren't going to stop, so he stood up, leaned over the side of the wagon, and waved to his friends.

"Hey, Gobo! Red!" he called. "Hey, you guys!"

Before anything else could happen, Felonious grabbed Wembley, and pulled him back into the wagon.

"Sit down, and shut up, you little twerp!" he shouted. "You're coming with us! Fink, get the lead out!"

"Right, boss!" Fink shouted, and began to pedal harder.

Wembley struggled against Felonious's grip, and managed to lean out of the wagon, and once again tried to get Red and Gobo's attention.

"Gobo! Red!" he shouted. "HELP!"

"I told you to shut up!" Felonious shouted, clamping his hand over Wembley's mouth, and pulling him back into the wagon. "Now do as I say, or you're going to be one sorry little Fraggle!"

Luckily for Wembley, Gobo and Red heard him yell for help, and they saw Felonious pull him back into the wagon.

"Gobo, it's them!" Red shouted. "Those two Fraggles I've been telling you about! I _knew_ they were up to no good! Come on! We've gotta go after them!"

Gobo nodded, and he and Red took off running after Felonious and Fink's wagon. Even though they were on foot, they were getting closer to the wagon, mainly because Fink was beginning to slow down, due to tiredness. Felonious looked over his shoulder, and saw Gobo and Red coming after them.

"They're gaining on us!" he shouted. "Faster, Fink! Faster!"

"I'm going as fast as I can, boss!" Fink shouted, trying to catch his breath. "I'm not as young as I used to be, you know!"

"Never mind the excuses! Just pedal faster!"

Fink groaned, and pedaled faster, but it wasn't fast enough to suit Felonious. He could still see Gobo and Red behind him and Fink. Finally, he saw something up ahead that he could use to his advantage. It was a large Doozer bridge.

"Full speed ahead!" he shouted. "And make sure you hit that Doozer construction!"

"You sure about that?" Fink asked.

"Just do it, rutabaga brain!"

"You're the boss, boss."

Fink pedaled as fast as his legs could possibly pedal, smashed directly into the Doozer bridge, and kept right on going. Doozer sticks flew everywhere. Gobo and Red didn't notice the ones that landed on the ground, right in their path.

"Come on, Gobo!" Red shouted. "They're getting away!"

"I'm going as fast as I can, Red!" Gobo shouted. "It's not easy chasing after a wagon on foot, you know!"

Suddenly, the two Fraggles ran directly into the Doozer sticks, and wound up tripping on them. To make matters worse, these Doozer sticks happened to be round, and Gobo and Red ended up rolling.

"Whooooaaaaa!" Gobo shouted, as he slid directly into another Doozer construction.

"Yiiiiii!" Red shouted, as she slid, right into Gobo. The construction fell, and buried the two Fraggles in Doozer sticks.

When Felonious heard the crash, he looked over his shoulder, and smiled when he realized Red and Gobo were no longer running after him and Fink.

"I knew that would slow them down," he said. "On to the campsite, Fink! And don't spare the Fraggle power!"

"He has _got_ to be kidding," Fink mumbled, but continued pedaling at the fast pace his boss had him on. While he was pedaling, the wagon hit a rock, and a bottle of Felonious's tonic fell out from the back. Neither Felonious, nor Fink, noticed.

"Watch the bumps, pebble head!" Felonious demanded, tightening his grip on Wembley. "I've already got my hands full keeping this little rock-rat still!"

"Sorry, boss," Fink said.

"You might as well relax, shorty," Felonious said to Wembley. "Your friends will never catch up to us now!"

And with that, Felonious cackled madly, which seemed to echo throughout the entire tunnel.


	4. The Great Baldness

Once Gobo and Red finally managed to dig themselves out of the pile of Doozer sticks, Red ran down the tunnel as fast as she could. Gobo followed her.

"They're too far ahead of us, Red!" he called out. "We'll never catch them now!"

"Says you!" Red shouted. "I'm not giving up!"

Gobo sighed. He knew once Red got started, there was no stopping her. They ran down the tunnel together, until they came to a fork in the road, where the path split in three different directions.

"Oh no!" Gobo shouted. "I forgot that this tunnel led to Fraggle Fork! Which way did they go?"

"I don't know," Red said. "Oh rock beetles! We'll never find them this way!"

"And we don't even know who they are, either."

"Wait a minute, Gobo! Look at this!"

Red walked over to the side of the paths, and picked up a brown bottle, with an old fashioned label on it.

"It says Dr. Felonious Fraggle's All Purpose Cure All Moss Oil," she said.

"Moss oil?" Gobo asked, making a face. "Whoever heard of moss oil? And who's Dr. Felonious Fraggle?"

"Someone to run away from very fast, if he's got a name like Felonious! I think that's one of the Fraggles we're looking for!"

"You think this bottle fell out of their wagon?"

"I sure do! Look at this path, it's easy to hit a bump in it and cause you to lose something if you drive over it too fast. I lost a wheel that way once during the Fraggle Five Hundred."

"Yeah, but it doesn't tell us which way they went. It was on the side of the path. If that wagon of theirs hit a bump in the road, it could have fallen out, and bounced against the ground, or rolled to where you found it."

"I know, but it gives us a clue of who those Fraggles might be! Maybe someone at Fraggle Rock's heard of this Dr. Felonious Fraggle, and maybe that'll give us a clue of where to find him, and his flunky!"

"It's worth a shot. To the Fraggle Horn!"

Gobo and Red raced to the Great Hall and the Fraggle Horn as fast as their legs would carry them. Red handed the bottle to Gobo, took a deep breath, and blew into the Fraggle Horn as loud as she possibly could. She did this five times, to make sure that every Fraggle in the Rock arrived at the Great Hall. After her sixth blow, the World's Oldest Fraggle banged on the horn with his cane as hard as he could, causing it, and Red, to vibrate.

"That's enough, you young whippersnapper!" he shouted. "We got the message!"

"Sorry," Red said, a little sheepishly. "I just wanted to make sure every Fraggle came. It's an emergency!"

"Aaaaahhhhhh!" Boober yelled. Then he began running around in circles. "Oh no! This is horrible! This is terrible! We're all doomed! AAAAAHHHHHHH!"

"Boober, I haven't told you what the emergency is yet!" Red shouted.

"Who cares what it is?!" Boober shouted. "I'm not taking any chances!"

"What _is_ the emergency, Red?" Mokey asked.

"Listen up, every Fraggle!" Red shouted. "There were two strange Fraggles hanging out at Gemstone Grotto and Yellow Cavern. Both times I saw them, they were talking to Wembley, and trying to get him to go with them. Gobo and I saw them when we were on our way to Splashdown Summit, and they had Wembley with them!"

"What?!" Mokey shouted.

"You heard right, everybody!" Red shouted. "They kidnapped Wembley!"

"Oh no!" Boober gasped. "I knew strangers in the Rock would be bad news! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!"

"Are you sure, Red?" Mokey asked.

"Positive!" Red shouted. "Gobo saw them, too, didn't you, Gobo?"

"Yeah," Gobo said, nodding. "They zoomed right past us in a wagon, and Wembley leaned out, called to me and Red, and yelled for help, and this Fraggle covered Wembley's mouth with his hand, and yanked him back into the wagon. If that isn't kidnapping, I don't know what is."

Several Fraggles began talking at once by this point. They couldn't believe what they were hearing. The World's Oldest Fraggle began banging his cane against the Fraggle Horn again to restore order.

"Hush up, you Fraggles!" he yelled. "This is no time to be jabbering and jawing all at once!"

"Where are they now?" Mokey asked.

"Unfortunately, we don't know," Gobo said. "We lost them. They drove their wagon right through a Doozer bridge, and Red and I tripped over what was left of it. We sailed right into huge Doozer tower and got buried in the mess. By the time we dug ourselves out, they were long gone. We followed them up to Fraggle Fork, where the path splits into three different tunnels, and we couldn't figure out which one they might have gone into."

"But we found a clue to who they might be," Red said, holding up the bottle. "When we got to Fraggle Fork, I found this bottle on the side of the road."

"Looks familiar," the World's Oldest Fraggle said, adjusting his glasses in order to see the bottle better. "Let me see that."

Red handed the bottle over to the World's Oldest Fraggle, and he inspected it. Then he let out an ear-shattering shriek, and threw it away as hard as he could. Henchy caught it, and looked at the label.

"Dr. Felonious Fraggle's All Purpose Cure All Moss Oil," he read. Several Fraggles gasped loudly at this.

"Oh _no_!" Aunt Granny Fraggle shouted. "Not Dr. Felonious Fraggle's All Purpose Cure All Moss Oil!"

" _Any_ thing but _that!_ " the Storyteller shouted.

"Head for the hills!" Gobo's uncle, Traveling Matt, yelled. "It's come back to haunt us! Aaaauuuugggghhhh!"

"And if that rock-awful tonic is back," Red's mother, Cerise, said, nervously, "then that means . . . . _he's_ back!"

"Oh we're all _doooooomed_!" Boober yelled. "If _he's_ back, there's no hope for us!"

"Who, Boober?" Mokey asked.

"How should I know?" Boober asked. "I don't know what they're all talking about, but why take chances?"

"Oh brother," Gobo muttered under his breath.

"Mom, who's _he_?" Red asked. "Do you mean this Dr. Felonious Fraggle? And what's so bad about this moss oil of his?"

"What's so bad about Dr. Felonious Fraggle's moss oil?!" Matt shouted. " _What's so bad about Dr. Felonious Fraggle's moss oil?!_ I'll _tell_ you what's so bad about Dr. Felonious Fraggle's moss oil! Look what it did to me!"

Matt took off his hat, and then he pulled off his hair. Several younger Fraggles gasped when they saw Matt's bald head.

"Hey, Uncle Matt, I didn't know you wore a toupee," Gobo said, and he began snickering, along with several other Fraggles. The snickering built up to downright laughing.

"I've never been so humiliated in my life," Matt mumbled, as he put his toupee, and his hat, back on. "I think I shall crawl under a rock, and die now."

"So it caused Uncle Matt to lose his hair," Red said, shrugging. "What's so bad about that?"

"It's much worse than that, Red," Cerise said.

"Far worse than you may think!" the Storyteller shouted, shuddering.

"We were all . . . ." the World's Oldest Fraggle said, shuddering a little, ". . . . all . . . . I don't know if I can say it!"

"Go ahead and say it, your geriactricness," Henchy urged. "You'll feel better."

The World's Oldest Fraggle sniveled a little, and looked down at his feet. Then he looked up at the ceiling.

"We were all . . . ." he said. Then he paused to snivel, and then he screamed at the top of his voice, " _BALD_!"

This caused several Fraggles to began moaning, and crying. Red, Gobo, Mokey, Boober, and several other Fraggles looked at them as if they were crazy.

"So what's wrong with that?" Gobo asked. "Plenty of Fraggles don't have any hair."

"It wasn't just our hair, Gobo," Cerise explained.

"We lost all our hair _and_ fur!" Aunt Granny cried.

" _All_ your hair _and_ fur?!" Gobo asked, incredulously. "Every last Fraggle? Completely bald?!"

"As boulders," Matt said, gravely. "Oh, it was _so_ humiliating!"

"Not one speck of hair or fur on anyone!" Cerise shouted. "Even our balloobiouses had fallen out."

"But . . . but I don't ever remember being bald!" Boober shouted.

"You hadn't been born yet, Boober," Cerise said. "Neither had Red and Gobo, for that matter. Mokey, you had been born, but you were only a week old, and too young to remember."

"Oh gosh . . . ." Mokey said. "You mean, _I_ was bald, too?!"

"Yep," Cerise said, nodding. "Every male, female, and child Fraggle was hairless. Not one of us was able to escape the Great Baldness."

"The Great Baldness?" Red said. "What do you mean?"

"Yeah, I've never heard of that," Gobo said.

"I give the floor to the Storyteller," the World's Oldest Fraggle said. "She can tell you about it better than I can!"

"Oh no, please, your world's oldest-ness!" the Storyteller begged. " _Please_ don't make me tell the story of the Great Baldness! It's too horrible!"

"I know it's horrible, my dear," the World's Oldest Fraggle said, patting the Storyteller's shoulder sympathetically. "But it _must_ be told to the younger generation, so they don't make the same mistakes we did. Especially if those two rotten radishes are back in the Rock!"

"Ohhh . . . . all right," the Storyteller said, resignedly. "One day, a long time ago, two strange Fraggles pedaled a wagon into Fraggle Rock. One was tall, and the other was short. The tall one introduced himself as Dr. Felonious Fraggle, and he introduced the short one as his associate, Fink Fraggle. They came to tell us about what he called Dr. Felonious Fraggle's All Purpose Cure All Moss Oil. He said it would cure every thing from abdominal pain to zoonotic hookworm, and everything in between! Well, we all were talked into trading five hundred radishes for this 'miracle cure' of theirs!"

"Five hundred radishes?!" Mokey shouted. "Wow, that's a lot of radishes!"

"Yeah, Darcy, Wini, and I must've been thumped at least ten times each going into the Gorgs' garden to gather enough radishes to pay those crooks off!" Cerise shouted. Darcy and Wini were Mokey's and Wembley's mothers, respectively. Darcy was the radish gatherer in the Rock before Mokey got the job, and Cerise and Wini often went with her to help her.

"They were under the impression that this moss oil would help heal them after being thumped," Aunt Granny said. "We _all_ believed it!"

Curiously, Red uncorked the bottle, and sniffed it's contents. Immediately, she flinched, groaned, and jammed the stopper back inside.

"Eee _uuuuwwww_!" she shouted. "That stuff smells _aw_ ful!"

"And it tastes even worse!" the World's Oldest Fraggle shouted. "Trust me! But we all drank it, and all our fur and hair fell out within two days."

"Nobody knows what's in it, either," the Storyteller said. "Nobody's been able to figure it out."

"Think you can identify the ingredients, Boober?" Gobo asked, handing the bottle to Boober, since he had the most sensitive nose in the entire Rock. He could figure out what went into any dish without seeing it being made.

"No way!" Boober shouted. "I don't want to risk coming in contact with that stuff and having all _my_ hair and fur fall out! I don't want to be bald!"

"And the World's Oldest Fraggle had a bad reaction to it, as well," the Storyteller said. "Not only did he go bald, but he turned pink, and broke out into red, yellow, and blue polka-dots!"

"I looked like a piece of tutti-frutti candy for a month," the World's Oldest Fraggle lamented. "And it took an entire year before all our fur grew back! I gotta tell you, that was one long, cold winter!"

"Yeah, I'll bet!" Gobo shouted.

"Felonious and Fink were also gamblers," the Storyteller went on. "They played games with us where we would bet radishes, and they _always_ won. They also sold phony good luck charms that didn't work."

"They also sold me a plot of land that was nothing but a swampy mess," Matt said.

"It took him two weeks before he discovered the land was worthless," the World's Oldest Fraggle said. "They bilked us out of so many radishes, I had no choice but to banish them from Fraggle Rock forever!"

"Apparently, they're back," Boober said.

"Not necessarily," Mokey said. "I mean, whoever those two Fraggles were, they may _not_ be Felonious and Fink. Maybe they bought a bottle of this stuff from them. It could be two different Fraggles altogether."

"Wait right here," the Storyteller said. "I'll be right back."

The Storyteller ran out of the Great Hall and to her cave for a few minutes. She returned with a piece of paper, and handed it to Red.

"Tell me, Red," she said, "were these the two Fraggles you've been seeing?"

Red looked at the piece of paper. On it was a pencil sketch of two Fraggles. One was tall, wearing a fedora, long-sleeved shirt, and vest, and he had a mustache. The other was short, wore a turtleneck sweater, and a bowler.

"Yeah, that's them all right!" Red shouted. "I'd recognize that mustache anywhere!"

"Then Felonious and Fink are back," the Storyteller said.

"Oh no!" Boober shouted. "And now they've got poor little Wembley in their clutches! He's too young to go bald!"

"Are they dangerous?" Mokey asked. "You don't think they'd hurt Wembley, do you?"

"It's hard to say right now," the World's Oldest Fraggle said. "Any Fraggle who would cheat an entire rock full of Fraggles out of five hundred plus radishes is capable of anything!"

"Then we'd better act fast!" Gobo shouted. "Everybody go to Fraggle Fork, get into groups, go down the three tunnels, and start looking for Wembley! Mokey, Boober, and Red, you stay here with me. We're going to make posters!"

"Posters?" Mokey asked.

"Gobo, this is no time to draw pictures!" Boober shouted.

"Yes it is!" Gobo shouted. "Once, when I was getting one of Uncle Matt's postcards, I saw the Silly Creature that lives in Outer Space watching a box that had other Silly Creatures in it. There was a wall in the box, with a poster of another Silly Creature on it. They called it a Wanted Poster, and it said 'Wanted Black Bart,' and it had a list of what he was wanted for."

"What was he wanted for?" Mokey asked.

"Cattle rustling, bank robbery, and holding up stage coaches," Gobo said. "Though I don't have any idea what any of that means. Anyway, lots of other Silly Creatures saw the poster and told a Silly Creature called the Sheriff that they saw this Black Bart on the poster, and told the Sheriff where to find him!"

"So if we make Wanted Posters of Felonious and Fink, and put them in all of the tunnels and caves here," Red said, "someone might see them and tell us where they are, and where they might have taken Wembley!"

"Right," Gobo said. "And we'll add Wembley's picture to the posters as well, just in case he manages to escape!"

"Great idea, Gobo!" Mokey shouted. "Let's go!"

And with that, the Fraggle Five immediately ran to Red and Mokey's cave to get started on their wanted posters. They had a production line going. Since Mokey was the best artist, she drew the pictures, using the Storyteller's picture as a reference. Red colored them in, since she knew exactly what color Felonious and Fink were. Gobo wrote the text on the posters, and Boober collected them when they were finished.

"Wanted," Gobo said as he finished the first poster. "Felonious and Fink Fraggle, for kidnapping Wembley Fraggle. Last seen near Fraggle Fork. Please come to Fraggle Rock and speak to any Fraggle you see if you have any information on the location of these three Fraggles."

"We've got to make as many of these as we can!" Red shouted, furiously coloring in the next poster. "And as fast as we can!"

"It's going to take us awhile, though," Mokey said. "No matter how fast we go."

"I don't care how long it takes," Gobo said. "Even if it takes us all night to make them! These posters just might help us find Wembley. I don't even care if we find Felonious and Fink! The most important thing now is finding Wembley!"

"And bringing him home safe and sound," Mokey agreed.

"This is all my fault!" Red shouted. "I shouldn't have left him alone!"

"No, Red, it's my fault," Gobo sighed. "I should've listened to you when you told me you had a bad feeling about those two strange Fraggles. I'm sorry I didn't believe you."

Red didn't say anything. Normally she would have gloated about being right and Gobo being wrong, but now was not the time for gloating. She was too worried about Wembley, and hoping those two con-Fraggles wouldn't hurt him.


	5. The Long Night

While the Fraggles were busy searching and making wanted posters, Felonious and Fink returned to their campsite. Wembley was still struggling, and now he was trying to hit and kick at his captor, but Felonious just wouldn't let him go, even though by now, he was having a hard time holding him. Wembley even tried biting him, but not even that would get Felonious to remove his hand from the green Fraggle's mouth.

"Stop squirming, you little wonkworm!" he yelled. "It's not going to do you any good! You're not going anywhere! Fink, get me some rope!"

"Right, boss!" Fink shouted, and he went to the back of the wagon and began digging through it.

While Fink was searching for some rope, Felonious pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket, and removed his hand from Wembley's mouth. Before Wembley could yell for help, Felonious gagged him with the handkerchief, then grabbed the green Fraggle's arms, and held them behind his back to keep him from removing it.

"Hurry up with that rope, boulder breath!" he shouted. "I can't hold him much longer!"

"I'm looking as fast as I can!" Fink shouted.

"Well look faster!"

Finally, Fink found some rope, and ran over to Felonious. Felonious immediately grabbed it, and used it to tie Wembley up as tight as he could, but he still had to hold him down. Wembley just wouldn't stop struggling and squirming, and it was driving Felonious crazy.

"Feisty little Fraggle, aren't you?" the mustached Fraggle growled. "There's only one way to take care of that! Fink, get me a rag, and the bottle of premulosse extract!"

"Right, boss," Fink said, going into the back of the wagon, and pulling out the items Felonious requested. He even opened the bottle, and poured the liquid onto the rag, since Felonious was busy holding Wembley down.

"This should do the trick!" Felonious shouted, taking the rag from Fink, and pressing it against Wembley's nose and mouth. "That's it, squirmy-wormy. Take a deep breath and relax. It's sleepy-bye time. That's a good little Fraggle. Just relax . . . ."

Wembley struggled against the sudden sleepy feeling he was getting, but quickly lapsed into unconsciousness. Once he was completely limp, Felonious picked him up, carried him to the wagon, and put him in the back of it.

"That oughta hold him for awhile," he said, as he shut the door, and locked it with a padlock. "I should've used the premulosse on him in the beginning!"

"Why didn't you?" Fink asked.

"Who knew he was gonna put up a fight? I thought he was gonna come quietly. Also how was I supposed to know his friends were on the same path we were? Anyway, we got him, so let's just sit back, and relax."

"Aren't we gonna take him to Gemstone Grotto now?"

"No, I'm exhausted from that fight he put up! If there's one thing I can't stand, it's a feisty Fraggle! We'll wait until morning. He'll be easier to handle then. The premulosse'll calm him down."

Fink nodded, and began collecting wood for a campfire, while Felonious sat down, and began munching on some Doozer sticks he had grabbed when Fink ran into the bridge.

"How long'll the kid be out, boss?" Fink asked.

"If we're lucky, until tomorrow," Felonious said. "We'll take him down to Gemstone Grotto first thing in the morning. That way, we'll have all day for him to dig us up those jewels."

"What if he wakes up in the middle of the night? Or what if he gets loose?"

"No way he can get loose. I tied him too tight. And if he wakes up in the middle of the night, and starts making noise, I'll give him another dose of premulosse extract."

"What about those two Fraggles that were chasing us? They might tell their friends. And word might get back to the World's Oldest Fraggle."

"Eh, stop worrying! Just go get some wood for the fire, and find some food for us and the kid."

"You're actually gonna feed the kid?"

With that, Felonious glared at Fink, and gave him a bop on the head as hard as he could.

"Yes, I'm gonna feed the kid, moss mouth!" he shouted. "What do you think I am?! Some kinda monster?! Besides, he's gonna need his strength to dig for diamonds and emeralds and rubies!"

Fink rubbed his head and nodded. Then he went off to gather firewood, and looked for food. Felonious sat back against a rock, looked at his wagon, and smirked.

"Sleep well, little Wembley," he said. "You're gonna go to work for us tomorrow."

As the Ditzies' light began to fade for the day, the Fraggles who went to search around Fraggle Fork were returning back to the Rock. Nobody had any luck locating Felonious's wagon. They couldn't even find wheel tracks in the ground. Every single Fraggle wanted to get some sleep, and pick up the search again in the morning. Except Red. She found she couldn't sleep, so she continued to draw up Wanted Posters. They weren't as good as Mokey's, but her drawings did resemble Felonious, Fink, and Wembley closely enough.

"I have to keep making these posters," she said. "I don't care how many I have to make, and how long it takes me. We've just gotta find Wembley!"

"Red?" Mokey asked, waking up. "Are you still up? It's past bedtime. What are you doing?"

"I'm making more Wanted Posters," Red said, not even looking up from her work. "I've got to make at least a million of them so we can find the two crooked Fraggles that took Wembley."

"I know you're worried, Red, but it's getting late. Don't you think you should get some rest?"

"No, Mokey, I can't! I have to keep making these posters! I have to make enough cover the entire rock with them! Every last tunnel, every last location in Fraggle Rock . . . . Wembley could be _any_ where, from Belching Boulder to Table Rock Cavern, and anywhere in between. We can't leave any stone unturned!"

"Wow, Red, you're not really serious about this, are you?"

"You bet I'm serious, Mokey! I'll make enough posters to cover every inch of the Gorgs' castle if I have to!"

Mokey couldn't believe what Red was saying. She half expected this to be coming from Gobo, considering Wembley was Gobo's best friend. While Mokey was trying to think of a way to get Red to come to bed, there was a knock on the cave door. Mokey looked over, and saw Gobo standing there.

"Gobo, what are you doing here?" Mokey asked.

"I couldn't sleep," Gobo said, with a sigh. "I'm too worried about Wembley. I saw a light in your window, and I came over to see if you two were still up."

"Well, I was asleep, but Red's still at it with those posters," Mokey said. "She says she's going to make enough to cover every inch of the Gorgs' castle if she has to. I think she feels bad about what happened."

"Oh, Red," Gobo said, walking over to the pigtailed Fraggle, and putting his hand on her shoulder. "You shouldn't feel bad about what happened! If anyone should feel bad, it should be me! After all, I was the one who didn't believe you when you said you had a bad feeling about those two Fraggles. And I was the one who convinced you to go to Splashdown Summit with me instead of spending the entire day with Wembley."

"I know, Gobo," Red sighed. "But I could have refused to go with you. I _should_ have refused! If I hadn't gone with you, Wembley would be fine now. Gobo, I'm really worried. What do they want him for? Why did they kidnap him?"

"I don't know. I just hope he's all right. He just has to be."

"I keep thinking about what they're going to him. What if we never see him again?"

"Red, don't talk like that!" Mokey shouted. "I'm sure they won't hurt Wembley!"

"Boy," Red sighed. "I really _am_ starting to sound like Boober!"

"Well, we'd better get some sleep," Mokey said. "We'll need plenty of rest to put up those posters and look for them tomorrow."

Red and Gobo just sat there. They were too anxious to get any sleep, and Mokey knew it. She heaved a sigh, and left the cave.

"I'll go get you both some warm radish milk," she said. "I think it'll help calm you down."

Red nodded, and went back to the posters. Gobo sighed, and sat down on a rock next to Mokey's desk.

"Anything you want me to do to help?" he asked.

"You remember what Felonious and Fink look like from the other posters we made?" Red asked.

"Yeah."

"Then grab a crayon."

Gobo nodded, picked up a piece of paper and one of Mokey's crayons, and got to work helping Red make more posters. When Mokey returned with the radish milk, both Red and Gobo refused it, so she just left the glasses on the desk for them, and went back to bed. At least they were quiet about working on the posters so she could sleep.

Quite a few hours later, Mokey woke up when she felt someone shaking her shoulder. It was Lanford, her pet Night-Blooming-Yellow-Leaved Deathwort plant.

"What is it, Lanford?" Mokey asked, yawning. "It can't be time to get up yet. It's still dark outside."

"Shhhh," Lanford said, and then pointed over to the desk.

Mokey looked to where Lanford was pointing, and found Red slumped over the desk, and Gobo laying on the floor, both asleep. Mokey immediately got up, walked over to the desk, pulled Red to her feet, and guided her to her hammock.

"Come on, Red," she said. "Time for bed now."

"No," Red said, drowsily. "No, I have to continue making the posters . . . . I need more . . . . they'll . . . . they'll help us find Wembley . . . . we just . . . . gotta find him . . . ."

"It's all right, Red. We have plenty of posters already. You can make more later. You just lie down and get some sleep."

Red tried to protest, but she couldn't. She was too tired. She fell asleep the minute her head hit her pillow. Mokey tucked her in, and then went to Gobo. She didn't have the heart to wake him up and tell him to go back to his own cave, so she took an extra pillow from her bed, and put it underneath Gobo's head. Then she took an extra blanket and covered him with it.

"Goodnight, you two," she said, as she put out the light. "And don't worry. We'll find Wembley, and everything is going to be all right."

Mokey climbed back into her own bed, and went back to sleep. While she, Red, and Gobo slept, Lanford reached over to the desk, grabbed some pieces of paper in his mouth, went back to grab some crayons, and began drawing more posters. He didn't like Red much (and the feeling was mutual), but every so often, he did something nice for her. This was his good deed to her for the year.


	6. Working in a Gem Mine

The next morning, Wembley woke up with a splitting headache, and feeling very disoriented. He couldn't remember what had happened the day before. He looked around his surroundings, and found he wasn't in his cave. Instead, he was bound and gagged, and in a dark place, filled with bottles labeled with "Dr. Felonious Fraggle's All Purpose Cure All Moss Oil," and the entire wagon reeked of it. It took a lot of self-control to keep from throwing up. That was when he remembered what happened. He wanted to try to work his way out of his bonds, but the moss oil smell was making him nauseous, and he felt too sick to try. He snapped to attention when he heard a click from the outside of this strange room, and a door opened. There stood Felonious and Fink, and they were both smiling, sneakily.

"Well, looks like our little friend is awake," Felonious said. He then pulled Wembley out of the back of his wagon, and sat him on the ground.

"If you promise to be a good little Fraggle, and don't scream, I'll take the gag out of your mouth," he said. "Though one scream out of you, and it goes back. Got it?"

Wembley nodded. He really didn't have much choice. Felonious nodded as well, and removed the gag. Wembley heaved a sigh of relief, but that was about it. He didn't want to press his luck.

"That's a good little Fraggle," Felonious said. "You're behaving much better this morning than you were yesterday, Wembley. We've had time to calm down, haven't we? Allow me to formally introduce myself. I'm Dr. Felonious Fraggle, and this is my associate, Fink."

"Wh-wh-what are you gonna do with me?" Wembley asked, nervously.

"What's the matter, Wembley?" Felonious asked. "Are you scared of me and Fink? Well, you shouldn't be. We're not going to hurt you. We're just taking you on a little trip, that's all. We're going to Gemstone Grotto."

"What for?"

"You and your friends saw all those pretty, shiny rocks in the holes down there, right? Well, Fink and I want them. We can't fit into the holes, and you can. So what we want you to do is to go into the holes, and dig those pretty rocks out for us, okay?"

"But Gobo said if someone takes those shiny rocks, they won't be there for anyone else to look at."

"Let me put this to you another way, kid."

Felonious then grabbed Wembley by the front of his shirt, and lifted him off the ground. He was tired of being Mr. Nice Fraggle.

"Either you dig those gems out of those caves, or you'll never see Fraggle Rock, or your friends, again!" he shouted, shaking Wembley back and forth a bit. "You get me?!"

"Y-y-y-yes sir!" Wembley shouted. "I g-g-get it all right!"

"Good," Felonious said, dropping the green Fraggle to the ground. "And, if you're a good little Fraggle, and don't cause any trouble, maybe we'll let you go after you've dug up all those pretty rocks."

"Yes, sir," Wembley said.

"Untie him, Fink," Felonious said. "Let's get this show on the road."

"Right, boss," Fink said, and he began to untie Wembley. "No funny business out of you, squirt! Especially if you ever wanna see your friends again!"

Wembley gulped. It was about all he could do. Once he was untied, Felonious grabbed him by the arm, and practically dragged him to Gemstone Grotto. Once they arrived, he handed Wembley a shovel, a pickaxe, a sifting pan, and a bucket.

"This is what I want you to do," he said. "I want you to fill up this bucket with those gems. Once it's full, bring it back to us. We'll empty the bucket, and then give it back to you, so you can go back in there and fill it up again, until there are no more gems left. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," Wembley said, a little nervously. "But that's gonna take awhile to do, since there are so many . . . ."

"Then we'll just have to work fast, now, won't we? Listen, my little friend. Tell you what I'm gonna do. For each full bucket you bring up, I'll reward you with a nice, yummy Doozer stick at the end of the day."

"Well . . . ."

"Good. Now get to work! And remember, I'm watching you, so don't try anything stupid! You even _try_ to escape, you'll regret it!"

Wembley nodded, and climbed into one of the holes with his tools. Felonious watched him start to work digging and picking. Then he turned to Fink.

"Go tear down some Doozer constructions," he said. "I'm gonna need some Doozer sticks."

"You mean you're actually gonna give him a Doozer stick for each bucket he brings outta there?" Fink asked.

"Of course. You know me. I keep my promises. And I promised him a Doozer stick for each bucket of sparklers he brings back."

"Right, boss."

With that, Fink ran off. Felonious sat down and made himself comfortable, also making sure he could see Wembley working.

Back in Fraggle Rock, Red gave several Fraggles the posters she and the others had made, as well as some Doozer glue, and told them to put them up in as many places as they could.

"The more people that see these posters," she explained, "the better chance we have of finding Wembley! Now let's get to it!"

Immediately, groups of Fraggles went off in different directions to put up the posters. Gobo led Red, Mokey, and Boober down to Fraggle Fork and started hanging up the posters there.

"I hope you're right about these posters, Red," he said as he pasted one to the cave wall.

"Yeah, me too," Red said. "I don't even know how I managed to sleep last night. I'm still worried about Wembley."

"So am I," Gobo said. "But we've _got_ to think positively about this, everybody!"

"Easy for you to say," Boober said. "You know I never think positively."

"That's for sure," Red mumbled under her breath.

"Though the one thing I don't understand is why they kidnapped Wembley in the first place," Mokey said. "I mean, Felonious and Fink just sound like a couple of con artists, out to make a fast radish. They don't sound like kidnappers to me."

"There are lots of reasons why con artists would kidnap a Fraggle," Boober said. "And they probably targeted Wembley because he's young and innocent, and believes anything you tell him. Let's face it, of all the Fraggles in the Rock, he'd be the easiest to kidnap effectively."

"Boober, please," Gobo said. "I really don't want to hear it right now."

"They're probably holding him for ransom," Boober said, ignoring Gobo. "They could have him holed up in a cave somewhere, biding their time, and then they'll send a ransom note, wanting ten million radishes in exchange for Wembley's life, and they'll threaten to kill him if they don't get the radishes. And they'll probably never let him go, even if we did pay them off, because crooks are evil like that."

"Thanks, Boober," Red said, sarcastically. "We _really_ needed to hear _that!_ "

"Or they could have kidnapped him to sell him into slavery," Boober went on. "They probably gave him to some horrible, unknown creature who'll make him work from dawn to dusk in a salt mine, and beat him with a whip if he doesn't do what his master says, and will only feed him table scraps once a week, until the poor little guy drops dead from hunger and exhaustion."

"Boober, please!" Mokey shouted, getting a sick look on her face.

"Or maybe they just kidnapped him in order to do horrible, unspeakable things to him," Boober continued. "Things too horrible to even mention out loud! They'll keep him for awhile, torture him day in and day out, and then, once they're done with him, they'll outright kill him!"

" _Boo_ ber!" Gobo shouted. "We get the point, already!"

"Well, this sort of thing happens all the time!" Boober shouted. "We'll find Wembley, all right, and it'll be in a ditch, and he'll be a dismembered, rotting corpse, and . . . ."

" _Boo_ ber!" Gobo, Red, and Mokey shouted in unison.

"You say one more word, Boober," Red warned, "and I'll take your scarf and shove it down your throat!"

Boober cleared his throat, and immediately stopped talking. Gobo and Red were definitely not in the mood to hear about his pessimistic theories.

"Maybe you and I should go back to Fraggle Rock, Boober," Mokey said. "Just in case."

"Good idea, Mokey," Boober said. "That way, someone will be there in case Felonious and Fink send a ransom note. I just know they will, and they'll wind up cutting off Wembley's balloobious and send it with the note as proof that they have him."

"BOOBER!" Gobo screamed at the top of his lungs. Red growled, looking like she was going to strangle the blue Fraggle.

"I mean, just in case someone sees the poster and knows where Felonious and Fink are keeping Wembley!" Boober said, quickly. "Yeah, that's it! Heh, heh, heh. Eeeehhhhh."

"We'll make some more posters, just in case, too," Mokey said.

"Thanks, Mokey," Red said, and waved as Mokey and Boober left the tunnel. Even though she had wanted every Fraggle's help putting up the wanted posters, she was glad Mokey came up with the idea of taking Boober back to the Rock. The last thing she (and Gobo for that matter) needed was Boober putting thoughts into their heads about all the possible things that could be happening to Wembley. Unfortunately, she found she couldn't get some of the thoughts out of her mind.

"What do you think those creeps are doing to Wembley, anyway?" she asked.

"I don't know," Gobo sighed. "But we can't think about that now. We've got to focus on being positive!"

"Right. And I'm positive we're going to find Wembley, and he's going to be all right! I hope."

Gobo could only nod, and he and Red continued hanging up the wanted posters, and calling Wembley.

While Red and Gobo worked on their search, Wembley worked in the holes of Gemstone Grotto, digging out as many precious gems as he could. Since he started, he had already managed to give Felonious at least six buckets worth of stones of various sizes and colors. Fink would take the gems, pour them from the bucket into a sack, and then give the bucket back to Wembley so he could go back down to dig up some more. It was a non-stop process. Felonious wouldn't even let him take a break for lunch. By the time dusk rolled around, the little green Fraggle was exhausted.

"Please, Mr. Felonious," he said. "Can't I take a break now? I'm so tired!"

"You can take a break when I say you can take a break!" Felonious shouted. "Now get back in there and keep digging!"

"When can I stop?"

"When I tell you to stop. Get back to work!"

"But Mr. Felonious . . . ."

"You want to go back to Fraggle Rock and your friends?"

"Well, yeah, but . . . ."

"Then shut your trap, and keep digging!"

Wembley heaved a sigh, and did as he was told. Finally, after hauling a seventh bucket full of gems out of the cave, Felonious decided to call it quits.

"Okay, kid, that's good enough for today," he said, as Fink poured the gems into his sack. "You can pick it up again tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Wembley repeated. "But . . . . but I . . . ."

"There are more gems in there! I only said you can stop for today!"

Wembley moaned, and nearly fell flat on his face from that news. Felonious rolled his eyes, grabbed Wembley's arm, pulled him to his feet, and once again, practically dragged him back to his and Fink's campsite, while Fink hauled the tools and the sack of gems back. While at the campsite, Felonious was going through the gems, greedily.

"You did a good job today, Wembley," he said. "Fink, put these in the wagon, and then feed the kid."

"Right, boss," Fink said. He took the sack, and put it in the back of the wagon. Then he approached Wembley with four small slices of a radish, a cup of water, and a Doozer stick.

"There's your reward for a good day's work," Felonious said.

"I thought you said you'd give me a Doozer stick for each bucket of shiny rocks I dug out," Wembley said.

"I did," Felonious replied. "And there it is. _A_ Doozer stick for each of the buckets. Bon appetite, kid!"

Felonious started cackling. Wembley just sighed, and ate what he was given without complaint. He had a feeling he was going to need all the strength he could.

"Well, Fink," Felonious said, stretching. "I'd say it's time to turn in."

"Yeah, good idea, boss," Fink said. "I'm wiped."

This gave Wembley an idea. He figured he'd be able to escape once Felonious and Fink were asleep. Unfortunately, Felonious seemed to be thinking the same thing, and both he and Fink grabbed Wembley by the arms, tied him up, gagged him, and locked him in the back of the wagon.

"Sorry, kid, but we ain't taking chances on you escaping," Felonious said, "or calling for help the minute our backs are turned! Now you be a good little Fraggle and go to sleep, so you can get up bright and early tomorrow morning, and dig us up some more gems!"

Wembley moaned as he heard both Felonious and Fink cackling madly. Then he sniffled, and tears began welling up in his eyes. He tried to hold back, but it was no use. The only thing he could do now was do what Felonious told him to do, and hope he'd let him go.


	7. The Echo Hole Sighting

The next morning was pretty much the same as the day before, except this time, Felonious let Wembley have two radish slices and some water before he got started digging.

"I wonder if this is where all the holes came from in the first place," he said as he used the pickaxe to loosen a sparkly red gem from the wall. "All sorts of creatures dug them out."

"Hey down there!" Felonious shouted. "Less yapping, and more digging!"

Wembley sighed, and kept digging. Once the bucket was full, he brought it out of the hole, and watched as Fink poured it's contents into a sack, and then threw the bucket back to Wembley. Felonious just sat there, munching on a Doozer stick.

"Mr. Felonious?" Wembley asked.

"What?" Felonious asked, sounding annoyed.

"How come you're just sitting there? I mean, I'm doing all the digging, and your friend's putting all the rocks in the bag, but . . . . well, what are _you_ doing?"

"I'm supervising. Now shut up, and get back to work!"

Wembley sighed, and went back to digging. Several hours passed, and Gemstone Grotto was looking more and more like Swiss cheese. After sending up a fifth bucket, and starting on the sixth, Wembley had to stop for a minute. He had been digging non-stop since dawn, and it was almost dusk. He was so tired and hungry, he could barely lift his own head, let alone the shovel.

"I don't hear anything down there!" Felonious called out in a sing-song voice. "Are you being a good little Fraggle and doing your work?"

"Please, Mr. Felonious, please can I stop now?" Wembley begged. "I'm too tired!"

"Oh cry me a river. Suck it up and get back to work!"

Wembley sighed, and went back to work. It was about all he could do. Finally, Felonious called it quits, and he and Fink took Wembley back to their campsite. Once they stashed their treasure into the back of their wagon, Fink gave Wembley his daily rations, which were the same as the day before.

"You're being a very good little Fraggle," Felonious said. "You're not making any trouble, you haven't tried to escape, and you're doing your work without complaining. Well, not much, anyway."

"Does that mean you'll let me go home soon?" Wembley asked, hopefully.

"We'll see. We'll just have to wait and see."

After Wembley was finished eating, Felonious and Fink tied him up once again, and put him into the back of their wagon.

"Keep being a good little Fraggle, and maybe tomorrow we won't tie you up when it's bedtime," Felonious said. "Pleasant dreams!"

Felonious shut the door and locked it, then stretched.

"Nothing like a hard day's work to make you tired," he said.

"Yeah," Fink agreed. "And this is nothing like it!"

"Shaddap!" Felonious shouted, and gave Fink a wrap on the head. Then he settled down in his hammock to get some sleep.

"Boss, I was just thinking," Fink said. "How are we gonna fit an entire cave's worth of jewels into the back of the wagon? It's not possible!"

"We'll _make_ room, cabbage head! Take out some of the moss oil bottles and get rid of 'em! After this, I'll never have to sell moss oil again!"

"Right. Gee, you're smart, boss!"

"Yes, I know."

And with that, Felonious and Fink went to sleep, both dreaming about how rich they were going to be.

The next morning, Felonious not only took Wembley out of the back of his wagon, but several bottles of his moss oil as well. He handed them to Fink.

"Take 'em to the Echo Hole and throw 'em in there," he said. "Then come back, get some more, go back to the Echo Hole, and toss 'em in."

"You sure you wanna get rid of _all_ of 'em, boss?" Fink asked. "I mean, maybe we should keep a couple handy, just in case."

"You kidding?" Felonious asked, as he untied Wembley. "With all these jewels, we'll never have to sell this stuff again! Get rid of it all!"

"Okay, boss. If you're sure boss!"

And with that, Fink walked off, with an armload of moss oil. Wembley was extremely relieved Felonious decided to dump the stuff.

"It's just you and me today, kid," Felonious said, as he handed Wembley a cup of water and two radish slices. "We're gonna have a lot of fun digging for gems!"

"Yeah, fun," Wembley repeated, and then he heaved a sigh that the Gorgs might have been able to hear from their garden.

"Aww, what's the matter, little guy?" Felonious asked, in a condescending tone. "Aren't you having a good time with me and Fink? I know I get pretty grumpy while you're down there in the caves, but you know I don't really mean it, right?"

"Well, I don't know, I mean . . . ."

"Then come on, we've got a lot of work to do!"

Wembley nodded, and followed Felonious to Gemstone Grotto, carrying his tools.

"Okay, now get to work," the mustached Fraggle said.

Wembley heaved another sigh, and went into one of the caves to dig for more gems. He felt doing this was the only way Felonious would let him go.

While Wembley dug for gems, Mokey, Red, Lou, Tosh, and Tosh's pet, Beastie, were scouring areas of the cave for the two fugitive Fraggles. They were using Beastie to try to sniff them out.

"Two days straight, and nobody's been able to find anything," Red sighed.

"They could be farther away from the Rock than we think," Lou said, as she pasted a wanted poster on the wall.

"Don't worry, Red," Mokey said. "I'm sure we'll be able to find them."

"Yeah, Beastie's very good at sniffing things out," Tosh said. "Aren't you, Beastie?"

Beastie gave a low growl, and continued sniffing around, while the four Fraggles called out Wembley's name.

"At least there's one good thing about this," Mokey said. "They haven't sent a ransom note."

"Not yet, anyway," Red said. "At this point, I'd actually welcome one! You know we've checked almost every nook and cranny of the tunnels around here? You'd think we'd find a trace of them somewhere!"

"Hey, did anybody check the cave where the World's Oldest Fraggle does holds the Finger of Light game?" Lou asked.

"You know, I don't know," Tosh said.

"I think the others have been avoiding it," Mokey said, "considering you have to go past the Echo Hole to get there, and the only way over is a bridge that's kind of flimsy. Every Fraggle knows the Echo Hole is at least ten thousand feet deep!"

"Well, I'm not afraid!" Red shouted. "And that just might be where Felonious and Fink are holding Wembley. They probably figured since the bridge is so flimsy, nobody will want to cross it to check it out. To the Echo Hole!"

With that, Red led the way to the Echo Hole, with Mokey, Lou, Tosh, and Beastie close behind. Right before the quintet reached the Echo Hole, they heard something strange. It sounded like breaking glass, and it was echoing.

"What the heck is that?" Red asked. Before the others could answer, the noise was heard again.

"Sounds like something breaking," Lou said. The group paused, and the sound was heard again. "And I'll bet it's coming from the Echo Hole. You know how that place echoes!"

"That's for sure," Red said. "Nothing echoes quite like the Echo Hole!"

"Wait a minute," Mokey said, sniffing the air. "Do you guys smell something?"

Red, Lou, Tosh, and Beastie began sniffing, and then they all grimaced, groaned, and moaned.

"Ooooohhh, what _is_ that?!" Lou shouted, covering her nose.

"It's _horri_ ble!" Tosh shouted. "Ooohhh yuck!"

"It smells like stinkwater mixed with rancid skunk cabbage, moldy moss, burnt binooni berries, rotten potatoes, swampy stinkbugs, and . . . ." Mokey said. Then she paused to sniff again, and nearly passed out. "Oh, pee _yeeewww_! Corpse Chrysanthemums!"

"Corpse Chrysanthemums?" Tosh asked.

"Yeah, flowers that smell like rotting corpses!" Red groaned. "Bleah! Ick! Yuck! Blecccchhhh!"

"Oooohhh, I feel like I'm gonna throw up!" Lou moaned, turning a bit green.

"Me too!" Red shouted, pinching her own nose shut. "Uggghhh, it reminds me of Felonious's moss oil! It wouldn't surprise me if that stuff was made out of stinkwater, rancid skunk cabbage, moldy moss, burnt binooni berries, rotten potatoes, swampy stinkbugs, and Corpse Chrysanthemums! This smell coming from the Echo Hole smells _exactly_ like that stuff!"

"I wonder how long it took the Great Hall to air out during the Great Baldness?" Lou asked. "Ugh! How could they _stand_ this stench?!"

"I don't know," Tosh said. "But let's get out of here! This smell is _aw_ ful! Just plain _aw_ ful!"

Beastie lowered her head, and covered her nose with her front paws, whimpering. The girls were about to turn back, due to the overpowering stench, when Red suddenly stopped.

"Wait a second!" she shouted. "I just said whatever this stench is smells exactly like Felonious's moss oil! Maybe it _is_ his moss oil! They just might be here! We've got to check it out!"

"Oh no," Tosh moaned.

"Do we _have_ to?" Lou whined.

"Yeah, Red, that smell will peel our wanted posters right off the walls!" Mokey shouted. "I don't know if I can even stand it!"

"Okay, I'll do this by myself, then!" Red shouted. "At least Wembley will know _one_ of us cares about him!"

Red turned around, and went forward, toward the awful smell. Mokey, Lou, and Tosh stared after her, then looked at each other.

"Wait up, Red!" Lou shouted. "I'm going with you!"

"Me too!" Mokey shouted.

"I think I'll stay here with Beastie," Tosh said. "These fumes are just a little too much for us, right Beastie?"

" _Blecchhh_!" Beastie shouted.

Red, Mokey, and Lou followed the smell all the way to the Echo Hole, where it was the most powerful. They were almost overcome with the stench, but, as it turned out, Red's hunch had been right. The smell was definitely that of Dr. Felonious Fraggle's All Purpose Cure All Moss Oil.

"Look!" she whispered, as she, Mokey, and Lou ducked behind a group of rocks. "It's Felonious's little flunky, Fink!"

"And he's throwing bottles of moss oil right into the Echo Hole," Lou said.

"I wonder what he's doing that for?" Mokey asked.

"I don't know, and I don't care!" Red shouted. "Let's just get him!"

Red jumped out from her hiding place, and ran toward Fink as fast as she could.

"CHARRRRRGE!" she shouted.

"Huh?" Fink asked, looking up. He saw Red charging at him, and immediately, he began running.

"Yipes!" he shouted.

"Come back here, Fink Fraggle!" Red shouted.

"Come on, Lou!" Mokey shouted, and she and Lou ran after Red.

Red, Mokey, and Lou chased Fink all around the Echo hole, before Fink reached the flimsy bridge. The teal-colored Fraggle looked at the bridge, then down at the Echo Hole, and then at the three Fraggles chasing him.

"Times like this, I'm glad I used to do a tightrope walking act!" he shouted, as he tiptoed across the bridge, and took off running.

"Oh no!" Red groaned. "He went across the bridge! I _hate_ crossing this bridge!"

"If we don't, we'll lose him!" Lou shouted. "And we have to catch him if we want to find out where Wembley is!"

"Right," Mokey said. "Come on, let's go!"

Red nodded, and gulped. She took Mokey's hand, and Mokey took Lou's, and the three of them slowly crossed the bridge together, nervously. Once they were across the bridge, they looked around for Fink.

"Where is that little rock-rat?" Red asked.

"There he is!" Mokey shouted, pointing to a rock which, Fink was hiding behind.

"Uh oh," Fink said. "I'd better am-scray!"

"After him!" Lou shouted.

Red, Mokey, and Lou charged forward, and Fink dashed off as fast as he could. He had to make it back to the campsite before the three girls caught him. The unfortunate thing was, they were getting closer. Finally, he came to a small gorge, which would be easy for him to jump over, but he knew if he could jump it, the girls would probably be able to jump over it, too. Then he came up with an idea. He still had a bottle of Felonious's moss oil with him. He jumped over the gorge, and waited.

"There he is!" Lou shouted. "On the other side of that gorge!"

"We can jump that easily!" Red shouted.

"I wonder why he's just standing there, though?" Mokey asked.

"Who cares?" Red replied. "It'll just make him easier to catch!"

"Catch this, Fraggles!" Fink shouted, and threw the bottle of moss oil as hard as he could.

The bottle hit a stalagmite, and shattered, spilling the moss oil all over the ground, and spreading the noxious fumes all over the place. Fink cackled, and ran off, breaking more bottles of moss oil behind him. Red, Mokey, and Lou skid to a halt before they could step in the stuff.

"Oooohhhhh!" Mokey moaned.

"Oh yuck!" Lou shouted.

"Ee _eeuuuuuuwwwwwww_!" Red groaned. "Hey, he's getting away!"

"And he's breaking more bottles of the moss oil behind him," Mokey said.

"That little fink isn't playing fair!" Red shouted.

"I guess they don't call him Fink for nothing," Lou said, shrugging.

"Oh, what an _ab_ solutely _horrid_ smell!" Mokey shouted.

"Come on, we'd better head back before we're asphyxiated!" Lou shouted.

"We can't go back!" Red shouted. "We have to follow him!"

"But this smell is too much!" Mokey shouted. "We'll never be able to help Wembley if we pass out, unable to breathe because of it!"

"Besides," Lou said, sniffing at her smock, "if we try to follow him with the intent to sneak up on him and Felonious, it'll never work. This stink is beginning to rub off on our clothes! They'd smell us coming a mile away!"

"Yeah, we'd better get back to Fraggle Rock and clean up," Mokey said.

"But this might be our only chance to find Wembley!" Red argued.

"Red, we just can't right now!" Mokey shouted. "I know you're worried about Wembley, and so are we, but I really don't want to follow Fink's trail if he's breaking bottles of moss oil behind him every step of the way!"

"Yeah, it'll knock us out before we get a chance to find out where he and Felonious are hiding," Lou said. "Now come on!"

"No!" Red shouted. "If you won't help me, then I'll just go rescue Wembley by myself!"

"Red, you _know_ what happens every time you try to do something big by yourself!" Lou sighed, frustratedly.

"Yeah, it always ends in disaster," Mokey said.

Red groaned, and followed Lou and Mokey back to Tosh and Beastie, grudgingly.


	8. Keep Searching

Red, Mokey, Lou, Tosh, and Beastie returned to Fraggle Rock, dejected. Gobo saw them, and ran over to them.

"Did you girls have any . . . ." he asked, but stopped short when he got a whiff of what they smelled like. "Ooohhh yuck! Bleccchhh! Ick! Eeewwww! What have you girls been _do_ ing?! Ooohhh!"

"It's that bad, huh?" Lou said.

"Bad?!" Gobo repeated, holding his nose. "You all smell like you've been swimming in stinkwater mixed with rancid skunk cabbage, moldy moss, burnt binooni berries, rotten potatoes, swampy stinkbugs, and Corpse Chrysanthemums!"

"How'd you guess?" Red asked.

"Don't tell me I was right!" Gobo shouted.

"Not exactly," Mokey said. "We found Fink at the Echo Hole dumping Felonious's moss oil into it. We chased after him, but he threw a bottle of it at us, and broke several others behind him as he was running away."

"We couldn't go after him without stepping in the stuff," Lou said. "And the smell of it was just unbearable!"

"Boy, I'll say!" Gobo shouted, waving his hand to try to disperse the odor.

"Don't take this personally, Red," Boober said, putting a protective mask over his nose. "But I think you, Mokey, Tosh, and Lou should take about a hundred baths to get rid of that smell. Right away!"

The girls had to agree with Boober on that one. They didn't like the smell anymore than the other Fraggles. Boober led them to a secluded place away from Fraggle Rock, bringing the washtub the Fraggles used as a bathtub, washcloths, towels, scrub brushes, a barrel full of rock soap, some lavender extract, and rose petals. He filled the tub with water, poured in the lavender extract and rose petals, and started to leave.

"Just come back when you're done," he said. "That way, I'll know when I need to refill the bathtub for the next Fraggle."

"Thanks, Boober," Mokey said. "I think."

"Oh, and drop off your clothes with me as well," Boober said. "I'll take care of them too. Though I might have to bury them. I doubt I'll be able to get the smell out of them. There is no way in the world I'm going to mix them with my laundry! The stench will be all over them like they're all over theirs! Bleah!"

Boober was suddenly beaned in the head with four bars of rock soap. The girls had heard him, and they did not think his comment was funny at all.

Boober returned to Fraggle Rock and found Gobo looking over several maps with Traveling Matt, Morris, Marlon, Large Marvin, Feenie, Rumple, Pedley, and the entire Fraggle Rock Volunteer Fire Department.

"I don't think we'll be able to do much searching around the Echo Hole for awhile," Firechief Fraggle said. "Not after what the girls told us."

"And especially not after what they smelled like when they came back!" Gobo shouted. "Pew!"

"How long do you think it'll take to air out?" Morris asked.

"Anywhere from a week to ten Fraggle moons," Firechief said. "Felonious's moss oil is some pretty potent stuff!"

"So we've noticed," Boober said.

"Okay, so going into the Echo Hole is out, unless you want to choke to death on moss oil fumes," Gobo said.

"Obviously," Matt said. "All right, every Fraggle! Right now, I want everyone to give me an update on what they have been doing in the search! That way we can narrow down places to look!"

"Large Marvin and I checked Chimney Hole Cavern," Feenie said. "But we couldn't find anything."

"We even tried to climb up to the hole in the top," Large Marvin said. "But I fell down and went boom."

"No sign of them being at Crystal Cavern, either," Pedley said. "Although Morris and I didn't really give the place a thorough search."

"And why not?" Matt asked. "We _must_ search the entire rock in order to find little Wembley, you know!"

"Sure, that's easy for you to say!" Morris shouted. "You weren't the one being surrounded by Rock Clingers!"

"Well, that's no excuse!" Matt shouted.

"Come on, Uncle Matt, you know how Rock Clingers are!" Gobo shouted. "Pedley, Morris, I really don't blame you for not searching Crystal Cavern with a fine tooth comb, and I seriously doubt Felonious would hide out there, anyway, considering how Rock Clingers are. Yuck!"

"I went to the Caves of Boredom," Marlon said. "But then I had to turn back."

"How come?" Gobo asked. Marlon paused to think for a moment.

"I forgot," he said, finally. Everybody groaned.

"Well, considering what we know about the Caves of Boredom," Boober said, "I can pretty much guarantee Felonious and Fink wouldn't hide out there."

"I took my rock hockey team out to Brushplant Cave," Rumple said. "We passed the Cavern of the Creeping Crocus, the Great Gorge, and the Falling Rock Zone and searched them, too. But we couldn't find them in any of those places."

"Did you check the Den of the Gagtoothed Groan?" Pedley asked.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Rumple shouted.

"He has a point there," Boober said. "No smart Fraggle would _dare_ go inside the Den of the Gagtoothed Groan!"

"I could check it out for you if you want me too, Gobo," Feenie said.

"I rest my case," Boober said.

"Uhh, no thanks, Feenie, that's okay," Gobo said. "But you've been putting the wanted posters up along the way everywhere you've been searching, right?"

"Yes," Pedley said.

"Definitely," Morris said.

"Of course!" Marlon shouted. "I think. I don't remember. Actually, I don't remember all that much coming back from the Caves of Boredom."

"Take a note, Morris," Gobo said, sighing. "Not only mark the Echo Hole off limits, but mark the Caves of Boredom off limits, too."

"Got it," Morris said, writing down Gobo's note on a pad of paper.

"How's the fire department doing on the search?" Gobo asked.

"Just about the same as everyone else," Firechief said, shrugging. "We talked to Convincing John, but he didn't have anything to help us. We saw Gillis Fraggle and his choir on their way back from Mossy Cavern. They told us didn't find anything there, and they said they were off to Firefly Cavern to search."

"Okay, I'll talk to Gillis about that next time I see him," Gobo said. "I already checked the Singing Caverns, the Spiral Caverns, and Sweetwater Grotto. Nothing there yet, either."

"Nothing new here on the home front, either," Boober said. "I've been waiting for someone to deliver a ransom note. So far, nothing that even resembled one has shown up."

"You think maybe Felonious and Fink have gone to one of the places we've checked, seen one of the posters, and moved farther away?" Morris asked.

"That's a possibility," Gobo said. "As far as I know, there are only a handful of places left to look for them, and to put up posters. And two of them I'm not sure I even want to look!"

"Where are they, Gobo?" Boober asked.

"The Gorgs' garden, and . . . ." Gobo said, and then he gulped. " . . . . Outer Space."

"Outer Space?!" every Fraggle in the room (except for Matt) shouted in unison.

"No Fraggle is brave enough to go into Outer Space!" Marlon shouted.

"Except for me, of course!" Matt shouted. "But fear not, fellow Fraggles! For right now, I shall venture off into Outer Space, and search for the fugitives! And I shall not rest until I find them, and rescue poor little Wembley!"

"But Uncle Matt . . . ." Gobo started.

"Tut, tut, nephew Gobo!" Matt shouted. "There is no time to waste!"

Matt stood up, and immediately tripped over his own feet, crash landed on the floor. He stood up, sniffed, and looked at the other Fraggles.

"I meant to do that," he said. "Off I go!"

Without another word, Traveling Matt was on his way to Outer Space to find Felonious and Fink. Gobo sighed, and went back to his maps.

"I highly doubt Felonious and Fink would be in Outer Space anyway," he said. "Especially since the Echo Hole is in the opposite direction!"

"What about the Gorgs' garden?" Boober asked.

"If you ask me," Marlon said. "Only a complete _boob_ would try to hide in the Gorgs' garden!"

"Yeah, I agree," Large Marvin said.

"Yeah, me too!" Feenie shouted. "Hey, Large Marvin, you wanna check it out, just in case?"

"Okay," Large Marvin said.

And with that, Large Marvin and Feenie left to search the Gorgs' garden. Gobo sighed, and shook his head.

"Those two are a couple of radish sandwiches shy of a picnic," he said.

"As long as someone searches the Gorgs' garden, and it's not me, I'm perfectly fine with it," Boober said.

"Come on, everybody," Gobo said, spreading some more maps on the table. "We've still got a lot of ground to cover!"

Meanwhile, Wembley continued digging, picking, and sifting dirt and sand for more gems. He hoped he was almost finished.

"That's a good little Fraggle," Felonious said, when Wembley came out of one of the holes with another bucket full of gems. "Just keep 'em coming, and maybe I'll let you have two Doozer sticks tonight."

"You must have a lot of friends, Mr. Felonious," Wembley said, as Felonious poured the gems into a sack.

"Huh?" Felonious asked, looking over at Wembley as if he were crazy. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, you're collecting all these neat rocks. You must want them all to give to your friends, since it's Fraggle tradition to give neat things to each other."

"You have _got_ to be kidding! What do I care about Fraggle tradition?! I ain't sharing these gems with nobody! They're all mine, you get me?! Now get back to work!"

"Gee, if I had all these neat rocks, I wouldn't want to keep them just for myself. I wouldn't know what to do with all of them. I'd give them to my friends. My friend Red would really like the red ones. That's her favorite color. And maybe I'd give Gobo the green ones, because some of the places he goes exploring have a lot of green moss there. And I'd give Boober the blue ones, because he likes doing laundry, and water is blue. And . . . ."

"Will you just shut up, already?! Just my luck, I get a gabby Fraggle! Get back down there and dig these gems up, on the double!"

Wembley quickly ducked down into another hole with his tools and kept on digging. Once the bucket was full again, he returned to Felonious.

"I just have one more question, Mr. Felonious," he said.

"What now?" Felonious groaned, rolling his eyes.

"If you're gonna keep them all for yourself, what are you gonna do with them?"

"They're gonna make me rich, kid. Filthy rich!"

"What does that mean?"

"It means I'm gonna have more than everyone else, and nobody else gets any! Now shut up and keep digging! And one more question outta you, just _one_ more question, I'm gonna reach down into your throat, and rip out your voice box!"

Wembley gulped, and kept digging. He didn't say another word the rest of the day. About an hour after dusk, Felonious let him stop. Since Fink wasn't with them, he made Wembley carry everything back to the campsite, and that sack of gems was heavy. Wembley fell flat on his stomach when Felonious took it away from him, and put it in the back of the wagon. He was extremely exhausted.

"Wonder where Fink is?" Felonious asked. "Shouldn't have taken him all day to dump the moss oil. Matter of fact, half of it's still in the wagon!"

"Hey boss!" Fink shouted, running up to the wagon. "We've got problems!"

"I'll say ya do, fungus face!" Felonious shouted, bopping his flunky on the head. "How come you didn't dump the rest of the moss oil in the Echo Hole?!"

"I was going to, really I was, but the kid's friends . . . ."

Felonious immediately clapped his hand over Fink's mouth, and shushed him before he could finish explaining. He looked over at Wembley, who was curled up on the ground, already fast asleep, since he was so tired from digging for gems. Felonious picked him up, carried him over to the back of his wagon, put him inside, and locked the door.

"Aintcha gonna tie him up so he doesn't try to escape?" Fink asked.

"Nah," Felonious said. "I worked him a little longer today than usual, and he lugged all the stuff back here. The kid's so exhausted, he'll probably sleep through the whole night, and if I'm lucky, he'll be too tired tomorrow morning to attempt an escape. Now what's this about his friends?"

"They spotted me while I was dumping the moss oil. They chased me into a cave, but I managed to get rid of them by throwing the moss oil bottles at them, and breaking them behind me as I ran. Then I got lost."

"You moron!"

Felonious bopped Fink on the head again, pushing his flunky's head into his turtleneck.

"Did they see which way you went?" Felonious asked.

"No, I told you, I got rid of 'em," Fink said, pulling his head out of his shirt. "But maybe we should pack it up, and leave, just in case."

"Oh no, not yet! I ain't leaving until I get every last gem in Gemstone Grotto!"

"But we shouldn't stay here too long, boss! Them Fraggles are bound to find us sooner or later!"

"Shut up, bean brain! Let me handle it!"

"Okay, boss. You're the boss, boss."

"Good. Now shaddap and let me get some sleep!"


	9. Return to the Scene of the Crime

Red sat at the window of her and Mokey's cave, staring out into the darkness. All the other Fraggles were asleep. She was thinking about what happened at the Echo Hole that day.

"Why didn't I just go after him?" she asked. "Why'd I have to let Lou and Mokey talk me out of following that little rock-fink, anyway? I shouldn't have let him get away! I should've followed him!"

Red heaved a sigh, and thought about what had happened that day, and what might have happened if she had followed Fink without Mokey, Lou, and Tosh. Then, she thought about the time the Fraggle Pond emptied while she tried to organize a swimming show, and she found she couldn't fix the pipes by herself. Then she thought about the time the Minstrels first came, and she tried to steal Cantus's magic pipe when she couldn't find "her song," and about the time she challenged Gobo for leadership of their group, and the time tried to start her own club after Gobo was elected leader of a club she had suggested forming. All of those times ended in disaster.

"Maybe Mokey was right," she said. "I'm probably a one-Fraggle wrecking crew. Besides, I wouldn't know what to do if I encountered Felonious anyway!"

Red sighed, walked over to her hammock, and climbed in. She swung back and forth a bit, staring at the ceiling. Then she sat up, and jumped out of her hammock.

"Even still, I'm not gonna give up!" she shouted. "Even if it takes me forever, I'm gonna search every tunnel, every cave, every square inch of this rock if I have to! I'm not gonna stop until Wembley's found, even if I have to go all the way to the Gorg's garden!"

Red yawned, and then went back to her hammock, feeling sleepy.

"Of course, they all may be right about one thing," she said, crawling into bed. "You can't do a good day's work of searching if you're dead tired."

Red yawned again, snuggled under her blanket, and went to sleep. But she would be ready and raring to go pick up the search bright and early the next morning.

The next morning, Red went to Gobo's cave. She had a new idea, but she needed something before she could execute it.

"Gobo, can I borrow your map of Gemstone Grotto?" she asked.

"Yeah, sure," Gobo said, grabbing the map. "What do you want it for?"

"So I can go back there and look for Wembley. I read a book from the Storyteller once about a detective, and the book said the crooks always return to the scene of the crime."

"But the scene of the crime was between here and Fraggle Fork."

"Yeah, I know, but I first saw Felonious and Fink at Gemstone Grotto. Besides, it couldn't hurt to check."

"Good point. Okay, Red. I'm going to check Blue Rock. See you later!"

Red took the map, and set off toward Gemstone Grotto.

Speaking of Gemstone Grotto, Wembley was still at it, digging out gems for Felonious. However, it seemed things were slim pickings.

"What's taking so long in there?" Felonious asked. "I sent you in there an hour ago, and you haven't come out yet!"

"I haven't filled the bucket yet!" Wembley called out. "There aren't that many rocks left in here!"

"He's got almost all the gems outta here already," Felonious said. "I'm impressed."

"I'm not," Fink said. "After all, you've had him working from dawn to dusk for three days."

"Shaddap, noodle neck!" Felonious shouted, bopping Fink in the head.

Finally, Wembley emerged from the last hole with the bucket, though it was only half full.

"I'm sorry I couldn't fill it, Mr. Felonious," he said. "But I checked and checked and checked, and there aren't anymore shiny rocks around."

"Yeah, I think you're right, kid," Fink said, looking into a couple of holes. "I don't see nothing!"

"Good job, Wembley," Felonious said, counting out some of the gems in the bucket. "You brought me every last gem in this cave."

"Does that mean I can go home now?" Wembley asked, smiling hopefully.

Felonious handed the bucket to Fink to pour into a sack, and stood there, stroking his mustache, thinking this over.

"Eeeehhhhhh . . . . ." he said. "Naaaahhhh!"

"What?!" Wembley shouted. "But . . . . but you said after I dug up all the shiny rocks in Gemstone Grotto, you'd let me go!"

"I said _maybe_ I'd let you go," Felonious said. "I didn't say I'd _definitely_ let you go!"

Felonious and Fink began to cackle madly. Wembley looked like he was about to cry, when he suddenly heard something.

"Hey," he said. "I think I hear something!"

"Yeah, like what?" Felonious asked, with a smirk. "What could you _possibly_ hear in this mess?"

"I don't know," Wembley said, pressing an ear against the cave wall. "It sounds like . . . . like someone coming!"

Felonious and Fink looked at each other, and began snickering at what they thought was Wembley's foolishness.

"Wembley!" a faint, female voice called out.

"What was that?" Felonious asked.

"I dunno," Fink said. "I'm not familiar with this cave."

Felonious and Fink listened again, as the voice began getting closer and closer.

"Wembley!" the voice called out again. "Wembley, are you here?"

Felonious began to get a little nervous. It was obvious Wembley had been right. Someone _was_ coming. He pulled out his bottle of premulosse extract, and poured the contents onto a rag, figuring if someone was coming, Wembley might try to get his, or her, attention.

"Wembley!" the voice called once more. "It's me, Red!"

"Red!" Wembley shouted, excitedly. "It's Red!"

Red finally made it to Gemstone Grotto, and was looking around for her little green friend, including looking into several of the holes where the gemstones should have been.

"Wow, what happened to this place?" she asked. "Looks more like Swiss Cheese Grotto than Gemstone Grotto. Wembley! Where are you?!"

"I'm here, Red!" Wembley called out. "I'm right — _mmph!_ "

Before Wembley could finish, Felonious grabbed him, and covered his nose and mouth with the rag.

"Oh no you don't!" he hissed.

"Wembley?" Red asked, hopefully. "Wembley, was that you? Oh, I sure hope so! Wembley! Where are you? Call out again so I can find you!"

Wembley tried to yell for help, but the rag muffled his voice. He struggled, though, trying to pull away, but it wasn't working. Finally, Wembley lapsed into unconsciousness.

"'Bout time that stuff took effect," Felonious said, slinging Wembley over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "I was beginning to think he'd never drop off! Come on, we gotta get outta here before she sees us!"

Fink nodded, and followed Felonious out of Gemstone Grotto. Red looked around some more, and then heaved a sigh.

"Guess I was just hearing things," she said, dejectedly. "I thought for sure I heard Wembley calling me. Guess it's back to Fraggle Rock."

Red heaved another sigh, and left Gemstone Grotto, but not before pasting up another wanted poster. Felonious and Fink were hiding in the shadows, unseen. They were waiting until they were sure Red was gone before they tried to make an escape, but Fink saw the poster Red had pasted on the wall.

"Hey, boss, what's that?" he asked.

"Hmmmm . . . ." Felonious said, walking over to the piece of paper. Then he began to read it. "Wanted, Felonious and Fink Fraggle, for kidnapping . . . . oh crud, it's a wanted poster! I'll bet those Fraggles have got 'em pasted all over the place! Quick! Back to the wagon! We've gotta pack it up and move it out before anybody sees us and rats us out to those Fraggles!"

Immediately, Felonious and Fink ran back to their campsite as fast as they possibly could. Fink began loading up the wagon with the sacks of gems, and throwing out bottles of moss oil to make room. Felonious dropped Wembley on the ground, and began packing up the camping supplies.

"Fink!" he yelled. "Tie up the rock-rat, and put him in the back! And speed it up! We've got to am-scray outta here and now!"

"Right boss!" Fink shouted. He quickly tied Wembley's wrists and ankles, gagged him, picked him up, and practically threw him into the back of the wagon, locking the door behind him. Then he ran to the front of it, sat down, and began pedaling as fast as he possibly could. He had to get as far away from Fraggle Rock as he could.

In the meantime, Red returned to Fraggle Rock. Gobo and Mokey noticed the look on her face, and they figured she didn't have any luck at Gemstone Grotto.

"Well, that was a bust," Red sighed. "I thought I heard him, but I think I was just imagining things, because I couldn't find him anywhere."

"That's okay, Red," Gobo said. "You tried."

"It was weird, though," Red said. "All the shiny rocks that used to be at Gemstone Grotto were gone. The place looked like Swiss cheese, as if someone, or something, dug them out and took them."

"Digging them out could be done by any creature," Mokey said. "But taking them? I think only a Fraggle would be able to take them!"

"Yeah, but I doubt it," Red said. "After all, Felonious and Fink wouldn't be able to fit into those caves. Felonious is too tall, and Fink is too fat."

"Like you said the day I mapped it out, Red," Gobo said, shrugging. "Wembley might be the only Fraggle who can fit into those holes."

Red nodded. She was about to go back to her cave, when she suddenly stopped, and her eyes widened.

"Gobo!" she shouted. "That's it!"

"What's it?" Gobo asked.

"That's why Felonious and Fink kidnapped Wembley!" Red shouted. "They wanted him to dig the rocks out of Gemstone Grotto for them! They must have heard me say Wembley was the only Fraggle small enough to fit in them! After all, they _were_ there when we were!"

"But why would they want a bunch of shiny rocks?" Mokey asked.

"Who knows?" Gobo asked. "But I think you may be right about that, Red."

"Then I _did_ hear Wembley while I was there!" Red shouted. "I _knew_ it! Felonious probably covered his mouth to keep him from answering me. We now know the who, the what, the when, and the why. Now all we need is the where."

"The who, what, when, why, and where?" Mokey asked. "What are you talking about, Red?"

"She's doing the detective bit again," Gobo said.

"Thanks for reminding me!" Red shouted, and she dashed off. One second later, she returned wearing a brown trench coat and fedora, and she was holding a magnifying glass to her eye.

"Inspector Red is on the case!" she shouted. "To answer your question, Mokey, the who, what when, why, and where are typical questions a detectives asks herself when a crime is committed. Who was involved, what happened, when it took place, why it happened, and where it happened."

"If that's the case, Red, we already know where it happened," Gobo said.

"I know that," Red said. "But just humor me for a minute. There are two where's in this case. Let's go over the facts. The who is Wembley, Felonious and Fink. The what is those two con Fraggles kidnapped Wembley. The when is about three days ago. The first where is somewhere between Fraggle Rock and Fraggle Fork. And we just found out the why. Felonious and Fink kidnapped Wembley so he could dig out the shiny rocks at Gemstone Grotto for them. Now we have to answer the second where, and that is where are they hiding."

Red unrolled Gobo's map of Gemstone Grotto, and she, Gobo, and Mokey looked at it.

"Here's Gemstone Grotto," Red said, pointing to the area on the map. "And here's Fraggle Rock."

"What's all this area outside of Gemstone Grotto?" Mokey asked, pointing to a large blank spot on the map.

"I don't know," Gobo said. "I didn't get a chance to explore that area. I don't think any Fraggle has."

"I have a hunch," Red said, "that if we investigate that area, we'll find Felonious Fraggle!"

"You know something, Red?" Mokey asked. "I have a hunch you're right!"

"Yeah, but we'll have to be careful," Gobo said. "Uncharted territory could be dangerous. We'd better gather up some of the others and start searching!"

"Right!" Red and Mokey shouted in unison. Then, they, along with Gobo, split up to gather some of the other Fraggles. There wasn't a moment to lose.


	10. Escape

When the search party was assembled, Red and Gobo took charge. They told everyone to pack some supplies, and enough provisions that would last them for several days, as they were not planning on returning to the Rock for awhile. They were going to search until they either found Wembley, or until provisions ran out, whichever came first. They were also told to stick together, and not to wander off. Once everyone was ready, he led the search party to Gemstone Grotto, and made a face when he saw it.

"Wow, it's worse than I thought," he said. "Those crooks really ruined it, didn't they? All those shiny rocks making pretty colors all over the place . . . . now nobody can ever see them."

"Well, these holes might make wonderful homes for Fuzzy Caterpiggles," Mokey said. "Or maybe Burrow Beasts can use them as a nursery for their babies. Wouldn't that be nice? After all, baby Burrow Beasts are so adorable! So tiny, and fuzzy . . . ."

"Never mind that now, Mokey!" Red shouted. "We've got to search what's beyond this place if we're going to find Wembley!"

"Red's right," Lou said. "Lead the way, Gobo!"

Gobo nodded, and walked on, making notes about the places they explored, and mapping them out. After all, it was his job, and he didn't want to risk getting lost.

Meanwhile, Fink continued pedaling Felonious's wagon to the uncharted areas of Fraggle Rock, to an unknown tunnel that not even Gobo's great-uncle had ever explored before.

"Okay, stop here," Felonious said, at a clear spot. "I think we're far enough away from those interfering Fraggles."

"Thanks, boss!" Fink shouted, sounding exhausted. "Those gems sure make the wagon heavy!"

"Just shut up, set up camp, and find some food!" Felonious shouted. "I'm gonna go check on the kid."

"Right boss!" Fink shouted, saluting.

Felonious unlocked the padlock, and opened the door to his wagon. Wembley was still out like a light.

"Awwww, now ain't that sweet," Felonious said, in a mocking tone. "He's sleeping like a baby Burrow Beast. How precious!"

"Hey, boss!" Fink called. "Come here for a minute!"

"What is it?" Felonious asked, annoyed. "Can't ya see I'm busy?!"

"I know, but I just saw some mushrooms over here! You think they're poisonous?"

"Oh for crying out loud."

Felonious groaned, and shut the wagon door, but he was so sidetracked with Fink's stupidity, he didn't close it all the way, and he forgot to lock it completely. He walked over to Fink, and then took a book out of his vest.

"What's that, boss?" Fink asked.

"The Fungus Among Us," Felonious said. "It's a mushroom guide. It's got pictures of which mushrooms are poisonous and which mushrooms aren't."

"Boy, boss, it's a good thing for us that you can read!"

Felonious didn't answer, and flipped through his book to see if he could find a picture of the mushrooms Fink had found. It took a little bit of searching, but he found them, and they were edible, so Fink picked a bunch of them and brought them back to the campsite. After roasting them, and eating them, both Felonious and Fink began to feel sleepy.

"Hey, boss," Fink said, yawning. "I thought you said these were edible!"

"They are," Felonious said, stifling a yawn himself. "But the book said they're loaded with something that makes ya sleepy. Something like that, I dunno, I'm too tired to think right now."

"Yeah, boss. Me too. But I just got one more question."

"What is it now?"

"How come you ain't gonna let the kid go?"

"You know how many tiny caves and hidden spaces there are in these tunnels? There might be more treasure around here than we think! We can use this kid to get it for us! He'll make us rich! I'm never letting this Fraggle go if that's the case!"

And with that, Felonious climbed into his hammock, while Fink crawled into a sleeping bag, and the two of them fell asleep.

Wembley woke up a few hours later, to the most horrendous noise he had ever heard in his life. It sounded like some kind of a monster. He shook his head in order to regain a little composure, since he was still feeling a little hazy from the premulosse extract, and he realized that the monstrous noise began to sound more like monstrous snoring. He began to wonder if it was Felonious and Fink. Since he had always been too tired to stay awake whenever they had locked him in the back of their wagon, he never noticed their snoring before. While Wembley thought that over, he noticed the wagon door was opened a crack. He maneuvered himself slightly, and pushed on the door with his feet, and it opened a little more, much to his surprise. He noticed something else, too. Usually, when Felonious and Fink tied him up, they would tie his hands behind his back. This time, his wrists were bound right in front of him. Immediately, Wembley took action. Since his hands were in front of him, he managed to reach up and remove his gag, and then he began chewing on the ropes binding his wrists, until he managed to get the knot undone. Once his hands were free, he untied his ankles. He stood up, slowly opened the door, and looked around, cautiously. He saw Felonious and Fink, sleeping, and snoring loudly.

"Now's my chance to get out of here," he whispered. "I just hope they're as heavy sleepers as they sound."

Slowly, Wembley crept out of the wagon, and tiptoed away from Felonious and Fink. He didn't want to take off running at top speed just yet, because he was afraid Felonious and Fink would wake up. Once he felt he was far enough away, he began running as fast as he could, until the wagon was completely out of sight.

"I did it!" he shouted, excitedly. "I did it! I did it! I escaped! Now all I have to do is find my way back to Fraggle Rock! Oh boy, wait until Gobo and Red hear I escaped all by myself!"

Immediately, Wembley began to bounce along the path, making a grunting sound as he went along, but then he suddenly stopped in mid-grunt when he realized something.

"Which is the way back to Fraggle Rock?" he asked. "Should I go this way, or that way, or turn around and go back the way I came . . . . no, no, if I turn around and try to go back the way I came, Mr. Felonious will just catch me again. Oh boy . . . . what am I gonna do?"

Wembley looked around at his surroundings. It was dark, and pretty scary out there, but he knew he couldn't stand there and do nothing.

"I'd better keep moving," he said. "When Mr. Felonious wakes up and finds out I escaped, he's gonna be mad! I don't want to go back to having to work for him again! I've got to get as far away from him as I can!"

Immediately, Wembley began running in the direction he was facing, somehow hoping he'd find his way back to Fraggle Rock.

"One thing's for sure," he said. "I am _never_ going to trust another strange Fraggle as long as I live! I'm never gonna talk to anyone I don't know ever again, either!"

Meanwhile, Gobo, Red, and the other Fraggles were setting up camp themselves. It was getting late, and everyone was exhausted from searching all day. They did happen to come across Felonious and Fink's previous campsite, but the only things they found there were a couple of discarded bottles of moss oil.

"At least we're on the right track," Gobo said.

"How long are we going to keep this up, Gobo?" Marlon asked. "I'm too _tired_ to go any farther, and my feet are _killing_ me!"

"I know, Marlon," Gobo said. "You've been whining about it for the past five miles! That's why we're setting up camp for the night."

"You didn't say anything about camping!" Marlon shouted. "I didn't bring my sleeping bag! Did he say anything about camping?!"

"Sure he did," Morris said. "He told us to make sure we brought enough food to last for a week, and to bring a sleeping bag. Matter of fact, so did Red!"

"Right before we left, we made sure we all had provisions," Red said. "Remember?!"

"Oh," Marlon said. "Yeah. How 'bout that? I must've forgotten. But seriously, how long are we going to keep this up?"

"Until we find Wembley," Red said.

"Or until we run out food," Boober said. "Then we'll have to resort to cannibalism in order to survive, and even after that, we'll starve to death!"

"BOOBER!" every Fraggle screamed at the top of their lungs.

"Let me give you some sound advice, young Fraggle," the World's Oldest Fraggle said.

"What's that?" Boober asked.

"If you can't say something nice, keep your mouth shut!" the World's Oldest Fraggle shouted, giving Boober a bop in the nose with his cane.

"Oooh, that's gonna leave a nasty bruise!" Boober shouted.

"Come on, everybody!" Red shouted. "Everything is going to be fine! Just as long as we keep Large Marvin out of the food."

"Don't worry, Red," Large Marvin said. "I promise, I won't eat all the food."

"Good," Red said, as she unrolled her sleeping bag. Then she stifled a yawn. "Well, everybody, let's turn in."

"Oh goody, that sounds like fun!" Feenie shouted. "But what do you want us to turn into, Red?"

Every Fraggle groaned, and those who were the closest to Feenie hit him with their pillows.

"Hey! Wait a minute!" Marlon shouted. "What about me? I told you, I forgot my sleeping bag!"

"Share with someone, then," Red said. "And let us get some sleep, okay?"

"Okay!" Marlon shouted, excitedly. "Good idea, Red!"

And with that, Marlon tried to climb into Red's sleeping bag. Red was not amused by this.

"Marlon! What do you think you're doing?!" she demanded.

"You said to share the sleeping bag with someone," Marlon said.

"I _meant_ someone else!" Red shouted, giving Marlon a bop in the nose as hard as she could. "Preferably someone of your own gender!"

"Here, Marlon," Mokey said, taking a blanket and an extra pillow out of her backpack. "You can use these."

"Gee, thanks, Mokey," Marlon said. "But don't you have a mattress or something? Because without it, I'll have to sleep on the ground, and . . . ."

"Marlon, go to sleep!" Red shouted.

"All right, already, I'll go to sleep," Marlon grumbled. "But if I wake up tomorrow morning with a bad back, Red, it's all your fault!"

"Hey, Gobo?" Red asked.

"What, Red?" Gobo asked.

"Next time we come to a cliff, can we push Marlon over?"

"I'll think about it."

Marlon glared at both Gobo and Red for that, and tried to settle in for some sleep.


	11. Ups and Downs

Wembley had spent the entire night wandering around this strange area, trying to figure out where he was. Sometimes, he would go with Gobo when he was exploring some place, but this didn't look at all familiar to him. The Ditzies were beginning to light up. Wembley sighed and sat down right in the middle of the path, feeling tired, and hungry.

"Where am I gonna find radishes all the way out here in the middle of nowhere?" he asked. "I don't even know there's anything else I can eat around here, either. I wish Gobo was here."

Wembley sniffled, and whimpered. He was trying hard not to cry, but it wasn't going to work. More than anything, he wanted to go home. As he sat there, feeling sorry for himself, a couple of Fraggles passed. One was male and the other was female. They were both light brown, and they both wore identical coats and hats. They were lugging rocks along, when they saw Wembley sitting there, crying.

"What's that?" the female asked.

"Looks like one of the Rock Fraggles," the male said. "But what's he doing all the way out here?"

"I dunno. Come on, Beige, we've got rocks to get back, or the Cave's Oldest Fraggle's gonna have a fit."

"You go ahead, Tan. I'll catch up. I want to see if this little Fraggle's all right."

Tan shrugged, took her rock, and carried it off. Inadvertently, Wembley had found an alternate route to Fraggle Cave, home of the Cave Fraggles. Beige Fraggle had befriended both Red and Mokey, but Wembley didn't know him all that well.

"Hey, little fella," Beige said. "You're kind of a long way from Fraggle Rock, aren't you?"

Wembley sniffled and looked up. He saw Beige standing there, and froze. He just stared at him, too scared to move, or even speak.

"You _are_ one of the Rock Fraggles, aren't you?" Beige asked. Wembley remained silent, and he began shaking.

"What's the matter, you nervous about something?" Beige asked. "Is there a Poison Cackler behind me?"

Beige stood up, and looked behind him, checking for Poison Cacklers, but there wasn't anything there.

"There's nothing there to be afraid of," he said, reassuringly. "I think know what's wrong. Are you lost? I bet that's it, you're lost, aren't you?"

Wembley whimpered, and slowly began to back away from Beige as he started moving forward.

"It's okay," he said. "The Rock Fraggles and the Cave Fraggles are friends now. You don't have to be afraid. I'm not gonna hurt you. You look like you could use something to eat. Come with me back to Fraggle Cave. We just got some fresh radishes in."

Wembley stood up, and began to move away. Beige reached out and took his hand.

"Come on, it's okay, little fella," he said. "Nobody's going to hurt you! I'm just gonna take you to Fraggle Cave with me, get you some food, and then we'll take you back to Fraggle Rock."

Wembley yanked his hand out of Beige's, and ran off in the opposite direction, leaving Beige a bit dumbfounded. Once he got his wits back, he began to run after the little green Fraggle.

"Wait a minute!" he shouted. "Come back here! I just want to help you!"

Wembley ignored Beige, and kept on running. He didn't trust him.

"Even if he is a Fraggle, I can't trust him," he said as he ran. "I don't know him! He may turn out to be bad, like Mr. Felonious! I've got to get away from him!"

Wembley ran as fast as he could, down an unknown tunnel. Beige stopped suddenly, and watched him go down.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Hey little Fraggle! Stop! Don't go down that way! That leads to the Crumbling Cliffs! It's dangerous if you don't know what you're doing down there! Oh, it's no use, he can't hear me. I might as well turn back and head for home."

As Beige turned to head back to Fraggle Cave, a breeze blew through the tunnel he was in, and a piece of paper hit him in the face.

"What's this?" he asked, taking a good look at it. It was one of the wanted posters. After Beige read it, he immediately turned around.

"I'd better get to Fraggle Rock and find Mokey!" he shouted. "She and her friends are gonna want to know about this!"

And with that, Beige ran off in the direction of Fraggle Rock.

By this time, Felonious and Fink began waking up. Felonious yawned, stretched, and swung back and forth in his hammock a little. He didn't feel like getting up.

"Hey, Fink," he said. "Check on the kid, will ya?"

"Sure, boss," Fink said, stifling a yawn.

Fink got up, and walked to the back of the wagon. He found it was wide open, and Wembley was gone.

"Hey, boss," he said. "He ain't here!"

"Whattaya mean he ain't here?" Felonious asked, sitting up.

"Just what I said," Fink said, shrugging. "He's gone! The door was open when I got over here, and . . . ."

" _WHAT?!_ " Felonious shrieked, and he rushed over to the back of the wagon. He looked inside, and found that Fink was right. Then he hit Fink on the head with his fist as hard as he could, repeatedly.

"You idiot!" he shouted. "You moron! You imbecile!"

"What'd I do?!" Fink shouted. "What'd I do?!"

"You let him escape, mushroom mouth! Why didn't you lock the door?!"

"But boss, you were the last one at the back of the wagon, remember? If anyone forgot to lock the door, it was you."

"Never mind your excuses, fuzz face! We gotta find that Fraggle before he makes his way back to Fraggle Rock!"

Felonious boarded the wagon, while Fink took the driver's seat and began pedaling as fast as he could. As he was pedaling, he came across a path that split in two different directions, and stopped suddenly.

"What'd you stop for, branch brain?" Felonious asked, sounding annoyed.

"Look over there, boss," Fink said, pointing. "It's that girl Red, and her friends."

"Oh terrific," Felonious groaned. "They're probably out here looking for the twerp."

It was indeed Red, Gobo, and the rest of the search party. Felonious hopped off the wagon, and crept closer to them, to hear what they were saying. It was at that time Beige came running down the path.

"Mokey!" he called out. "Hey Mokey!"

"Oh, Beige!" Mokey shouted. "What are you doing way out here?"

"Looking for you," Beige said, handing Mokey the wanted poster. "I found this close to Fraggle Cave, right after I saw your friend."

"You saw Wembley?" Gobo asked. "Where? When?"

"Were Felonious and Fink with him?" Red asked.

"Close to Fraggle Cave, about half an hour ago, and no," Beige said. "He was by himself. He seemed afraid of something, though."

"He must have managed to escape from Felonious and Fink," Red said. "But why didn't you bring him back to Fraggle Rock?"

"When I told him I was gonna take him back to Fraggle Cave with me, he ran off," Beige said, shrugging. "He took off so fast, I didn't have a chance to catch up to him."

"I wonder why he did that?" Mokey asked. "He was there when we all met the Cave Fraggles, wasn't he?"

"Yeah, but I don't think he interacted with any of them," Red said. "Did he?"

"Don't ask me," Gobo said, shrugging. "I wasn't there, remember?"

"No, I don't think he did," Beige said, thinking back to the time the Rock Fraggles and the Cave Fraggles nearly went to war with each other. "But even still, I don't understand why he ran away. He couldn't have possibly thought we were still at war!"

"Wait a minute, I think I know why he ran away from you," Gobo said, and then he turned to Red and glared. "It's because you were the one who made him promise not to talk to any more strange Fraggles! This is your fault, Red!"

"What are you getting mad at me for?" Red asked. "And how is it my fault, anyway?!"

"Since you made Wembley promise not to talk to any strange Fraggles," Gobo explained, "he ran away from someone who could help him! You know how impressionable he is! You tell him something, and he believes it! Besides which, you never mentioned anything about how it was okay to talk to Fraggles you don't know when you're in trouble and need help!"

"Oops," Red said. "I knew I forgot part of Mom's advice about never talking to strange Fraggles."

"Well, it's too late for that now," Gobo said. "Which way did he go?"

"He went down a tunnel that leads toward the Crumbling Cliffs," Beige said.

"Oh no!" Gobo shouted. "We'd better hurry and find him before he tries to climb that mountain there!"

"Why?" Red asked.

"Because it's _very_ unstable!" Gobo shouted. "Nobody's ever managed to climb it, and Wembley might get hurt if the ground should give way on him! He's not an experienced climber! Beige, do you know how to get to the Crumbling Cliffs?"

"Well, I know how to get to the tunnel that leads there," Beige said. "But I wouldn't touch that place with a ten foot Doozer stick!"

"Can you at least lead us to tunnel?" Red asked.

"Well . . . ." Beige said, hesitantly. "I don't know . . . ."

"Oh, please, Beige?" Mokey asked. "Please? We have to find Wembley before he gets hurt!"

"Not to mention we have to find him before Felonious and Fink do," Red said. "They're sure to go after him once they find out he escaped. Who knows what they're going to do to him once they catch him!"

"Right," Beige said, nodding. "I don't know who these Fraggles are, but with names like Felonious and Fink, I'm not sure I want to find out. Every Fraggle follow me!"

"Thanks, Beige," Red said. "Come on, everybody!"

And with that, the Fraggles followed Beige to the tunnels leading to the Crumbling Cliffs, unaware that Felonious heard the entire conversation.

"Crumbling Cliffs, eh?" he said. "Good. I know a shortcut that'll allow us to get there before they do. Let's roll, Fink!"

"Right, boss," Fink said, and he pedaled off in the direction Felonious indicated.

Wembley, in the meantime, was running as fast as he could. The tunnel he ran into was dark and spooky looking. Everything in it seemed to be alive. Branches and roots were curved resembling grabbing hands. Strange noises echoed through the tunnel. Wembley could see several pairs of eyes in the darkness. He felt like the branches and the roots were reaching out to grab him. He kept on running, too afraid to stop. He pushed through a tangling mess of hanging vines, nearly getting tangled in them. Flying creatures darted out of hidden holes in the walls.

"I wonder if I've found the Terrible Tunnel again?" he asked himself. "This place sure is terrifying like the Terrible Tunnel!"

Wembley continued running, and saw a light at the end of the tunnel. He ran directly for it, hoping that it would lead to some place familiar. Unfortunately, it didn't. All that was around was a series of cliffs, and a giant mountain in the distance.

"Oh great," he said, sarcastically. " _Now_ what am I gonna do?"

"For starters, you can come with me!" an all-too familiar voice shouted, as Wembley suddenly felt his arm being grabbed. The green Fraggle turned, and found himself face to face with Felonious Fraggle.

"Oh no!" he gasped, and he tried to pull his arm free.

"Oh yes!" Felonious shouted. "Thought you could get away from me, didn't ya? Well, you thought wrong! Now be a good little Fraggle, and come with me."

"No!" Wembley shouted, and he stomped on Felonious's foot as hard as he could. He also kicked him in the shin on the opposite leg for good measure.

" _Yeow_!" Felonious yelled, ultimately letting go of the green Fraggle. Immediately Wembley ran as fast as he could.

"Gee, I should've thought of doing that earlier!" he shouted.

"Why, you little fuzzball!" Felonious shouted, chasing after Wembley. "Wait'll I get my hands on you!"

Wembley ran until he reached the mountain. It looked even bigger up close, and there was no way around it. He looked over his shoulder, and found Felonious and Fink were closing in fast.

"I guess the only way out is up," he said.

Wembley gulped, and started to climb, considering he didn't think he had any other choice. When Felonious and Fink reached the bottom of the mountain, they just stood there for a few moments.

"What do we do now, boss?" Fink asked.

"Follow him," Felonious said. "Start climbing. I'll wait for you down here."

"But, boss, this mountain ain't good for climbing! The ground comes loose, and . . . ."

"I don't care! Get up there and get that little Fraggle, or else I'm gonna spoon feed you every last drop of moss oil we've got left!"

"Yes, boss! Right away, boss!"

Immediately, Fink started climbing up the mountain behind Wembley. Wembley knew Fink was behind him, but he kept telling himself not to look down. He knew he'd only get dizzy that way. He was already worried about falling, anyway. He lost his footing twice, but managed to dig his fingers into the side of the mountain before he fell completely. Fink wasn't doing much better, since the dirt and pebbles that had come loose from Wembley's climbing hit him in the face, and slowed him down. Finally, Wembley made it to the top, and looked down. Fink was still climbing after him.

"Oh no, oh no, oh no . . . ." Wembley said, nervously. "I've gotta do something!"

"It's no use trying to escape, little fella!" Fink shouted. "You're coming with me and the boss whether you like it or not! So just make it easier on yourself, and just get your tail down here!"

Wembley looked around at the top of the mountain to see if there was anything he could use to dissuade Fink from reaching him. He finally saw a medium-sized rock, and figured he'd use that. He managed to push it toward the edge of the mountain top, and looked down toward Fink.

"Rock's away!" he shouted, pushing the rock over the side.

"What the . . . ." Fink said, as he saw the rock coming toward him. "Uh oh . . . ."

Fink started to scramble down the side of the mountain, but he was unable to before the rock hit him. The impact caused him to let go of the mountain, and he rolled down the side along with the boulder, crashing into Felonious, and knocking him off his feet.

"Uhhh, sorry, boss," Fink said.

"You moron!" Felonious shouted, bopping his flunky in the head.

"What are we gonna do now?"

"We'll wait him out. He's gotta climb down _some_ time!"

Wembley looked down from the edge of the mountain. He was pretty high up. He was thinking this was the highest spot in the entirety of Fraggle Rock, when he felt the ground giving way beneath his feet. He gasped, let out a scream, and backed up quickly, just as the spot he was standing on gave out completely. There was no way in the world he was going to attempt climbing down now, that was for sure!

"Oh boy, am I in trouble this time!" he shouted. "If I climb down, Mr. Felonious will get me. But if I stay up here, I might starve to death. What am I gonna do now?"


	12. Red to the Rescue

Gobo and Red were leading the other Fraggles down the tunnel Wembley had been in earlier. They were carrying lanterns so it wasn't as dark, but it was still pretty creepy.

"I can't believe Wembley went through here," Boober said, latching onto Mokey.

"Me, neither," Gobo said. "But I guess he was scared enough to do so."

"And too scared to turn around," Red said.

"Maybe we should turn back," Boober said, as he saw several pairs of eyes in the shadows, staring at him.

"We can't turn back!" Red shouted. "We have to go through this tunnel if we're going to find Wembley! Knowing him, he probably ran all the way through the end of it."

"But what if Felonious and Fink already caught up with him?" Boober asked. "After all, they have wheels!"

"If they get to Wembley before we do, then we'll just have to rescue him, that's all," Gobo said.

"How are we going to do that, Gobo?" Mokey asked.

"Yeah, they might threaten to hurt him if we try anything," Boober asked. "Even if we offer them ten million radishes, they won't let him go! They'll probably take him off to some Rock-forsaken tunnel, torture him, and then finally they'll throw him off a cliff!"

"Boober, if you don't cut it out, I'm gonna throw _you_ off a cliff!" Red warned. Immediately, Boober shut up.

Back at the Crumbling Cliffs, Felonious and Fink were still waiting for Wembley to come down, and Wembley was still staying put. He could see the two con artists at the bottom of the cliff, and there was no way he was climbing down if they were there, that was for sure! Felonious was starting to get impatient.

"When's that little furball gonna start climbing down?" he asked. Then he looked up at Wembley, and shook his fist. "You can't stay up there forever, you little fuzz ball!"

"Yes I can!" Wembley called down. He knew Felonious was right, since there was no food up there, and no way to get any, either, but he'd rather starve to death than be tied up, locked up, and taken away again.

"Either you come down, or I'm coming up to getcha!" Felonious warned.

Felonious waited, and when Wembley didn't respond, he took that as an answer, and began climbing.

"Okay, have it your way, kid!" he shouted. "I'll drag you down by your tail if I have to!"

Wembley began panicking. He looked around for another rock to push over the side of the cliff, but it turned out he wasn't going to need one. As he was leaning over watching Felonious climb, the ground gave away beneath him. Wembley backed up immediately before he could fall, and the chunk of earth smacked Felonious in the face, causing him to loose his footing, and his grip, and he fell. Luckily for him, Fink broke his fall.

"Whew!" Wembley sighed with relief. Felonious, however, wasn't very happy about this turn of events.

"Wait'll I get my hands on you, you little rock-rat!" he shouted.

"What'll we do now, boss?" Fink asked. "I mean, it's obvious he's not gonna come down while we're here!"

"Don't you think I know that, turnip breath?!" Felonious shouted, giving his flunky a bop on the head. "But we _can't_ leave! If we do, he'll finally come down and he'll get away! There's only one thing to do."

"What's that?"

"We'll go hide somewhere and make him _think_ we're leaving. Then he'll think it's safe to climb down. Once he's climbed down, we'll grab him!"

"Great idea, boss!"

"Yeah, I know. Now shut up!"

Felonious bopped Fink on the head and looked up toward Wembley.

"Let's go, Fink!" he shouted. "I ain't waiting around forever for that little brat to climb down! Let him starve, for all I care!"

"Yeah, right, boss!" Fink shouted.

Wembley watched as Felonious and Fink walked off. He waited for a bit, just in case they came back into view, but they didn't. It appeared that they had finally given up and left.

"Boy, am I glad that's over!" he shouted. "I was beginning to think they'd never leave! I guess I can climb down now."

Unbeknownst to Wembley, Felonious and Fink hadn't left at all. They had ducked into a shadowy area close to the mountain, where they couldn't be seen at all.

"Everything's going according to plan," Felonious said, quietly. "Now all we have to do is wait until he's down."

" _If_ he climbs down," Fink said. "Right now, he's just standing there."

Felonious looked, and saw Wembley was just standing there, contemplating whether or not to climb down. He smacked his hand over his eyes and groaned.

"Oh brother," he said.

"What now, boss?" Fink asked.

"Back to square one. We wait."

"But what if he never comes down?"

"He'll come down eventually. I'm sure of it!"

Wembley took a deep breath, and walked toward the edge of the cliff.

"I can do this," he said, nervously. "It's not that bad. It's . . . . it's not as high up as I think. As long as I don't look down, I'll be fine. I hope."

Wembley gulped, and began his descent, slowly. Unfortunately, he didn't make it too far before the ground beneath his feet began giving away. Once it did, he started scrambling back up to the top of the mountain. Once he made it there, the edge began crumbling, and he immediately backed away. He looked down and gulped when he realized he was higher up than he initially thought.

"I _can't_ do this!" he yelled, shaking like crazy. To add to the sheer terror he was feeling, his shaking caused the edge of the cliff he was standing on to give way once again.

"YIPES!" Wembley yelled, and backed up to the middle of the ledge before he could fall. "Whew! That was a close one! But how am I gonna get down? I'm too scared to climb down by myself, and there's nobody around to help me. I'll be trapped up here forever!"

Wembley sat down, and started to cry. It was about the only thing he could think of doing.

By this time, however, Gobo, Red, Boober, Mokey, and the other Fraggles had finally arrived to the Crumbling Cliffs, and looked around.

"Well, here we are," Gobo said. "And there's the largest mountain in the whole rock."

"You were right, Gobo," Boober said. "It doesn't look very stable at all. It's obvious Wembley isn't here. Let's go!"

"Wait a minute!" Lou shouted, looking through a pair of binoculars. "There he is!"

"Where?" Gobo asked.

"You're not gonna believe this," Lou said, handing Gobo her binoculars. "But he's actually at the top of that mountain."

"What?!" Gobo shouted, immediately raising the binoculars to his eyes.

"How in the world did he manage to climb all the way up there?!" Red shouted.

"Come on," Gobo said. "We've got to get over there!"

The Fraggles raced over to the bottom of the cliff and looked up. It was definitely a lot higher of a climb than any of them had anticipated. Even Gobo was apprehensive about climbing it! He gulped, and grabbed a hand hold, but the minute he started, climbing, it crumbled on him.

"This mountain's definitely not safe to climb," he said. "How Wembley managed to make it up there is beyond me!"

"If he made it up, can't he make it down?" Tosh asked.

"Yes, after all, it has been proven," Mokey said, "whatever goes up must come down."

"Unless he's too scared to come down," Gobo said.

"Maybe if we ran a ladder up there . . . ." Boober began.

"It'd be too short," Firechief Fraggle said. "I think the only way to get up there is to climb."

"And I'm actually a little afraid to try to go up this thing," Gobo said.

"Well, I'm not afraid to climb it!" Red shouted. She grabbed Gobo's backpack, opened it, and took a piece of rope out of it. Then she took Lou's binoculars, and began scanning the area.

"Ah ha!" she shouted. "There's a branch close to the top. I can lasso that and then use the rope to climb up and get Wembley."

"Red, are you sure you want to do this?" Mokey asked.

"Definitely," Red said, tying a loop in the rope. "And don't try to stop me, either! We've got to get Wembley down from there, and this is the only way to do it!"

"Okay, Red," Gobo said. "Good luck!"

"Thanks," Red said. "I think I'll need it."

Red took a deep breath, twirled her lasso, and threw it as hard as she could toward the branch. She caught it in the lasso, and pulled to tighten it. She tugged on the rope a couple of times to make sure it was secure, and then she immediately began climbing.

"I definitely wouldn't have the nerve to try this," Mokey said. "Red sure is brave."

"She's gonna die," Boober moaned.

Both Gobo and Lou nudged Boober in the ribs as hard as they could.

"Maybe you guys should get a safety net out here, just in case," Morris said to Fraggle Rock Volunteer Fire Department.

"Good idea," the fire chief said.

The fire Fraggles immediately got to work getting their safety net set up. The others just watched nervously as Red climbed. Felonious and Fink were watching as well.

"I think it's over, boss," Fink said. "The kid's friends are here, and what with that Red Fraggle climbing up there . . . ."

"It ain't over yet, Fink!" Felonious said. "This may actually work to our advantage."

"What do you mean?"

"Just wait until they start climbing down. Get me a bottle of moss oil, if we got any left."

"Sure, boss. But, uhhh, what do you need the moss oil for?"

"You'll see when the time is right. Now go get it!"

"Right, boss!"

Fink ran off to the wagon, while Felonious did some mental calculations. Meanwhile, Red finally made it up to the top of the mountain, and wiped the sweat off her forehead.

"Whew!" she breathed. "Made it! I oughta get Gobo's rock climbing trophy for this one! But, first thing's first."

Red looked over at Wembley, who didn't even notice the pigtailed Fraggle. His back was toward her, and he was still crying. Red walked over to him, and put her hand on his shoulder. Wembley gasped, and turned around quickly, afraid that Felonious and Fink had returned. When he saw Red, he immediately threw himself into her, and gave her the biggest hug he could muster.

"Red!" he shouted, and he began crying a little again. "Oh, Red, I'm so glad to see you! I didn't think I'd ever see you, or Gobo, or anybody else ever again!"

"We were all thinking we'd never see you again, either," Red said, hugging Wembley back. "Are you okay? They didn't hurt you, did they?"

"No, they just made me dig out the rocks at Gemstone Grotto for them. And Mr. Felonious said he was gonna let me go after I dug them all out, but then he said he wasn't, and he kept me tied up, and locked in the back of his wagon at night so I wouldn't escape, but I _did_ escape, because Mr. Felonious forgot to lock the door, but he found me, and that's when I climbed up here, because it was the only way to escape, but I'm too scared to climb down, and . . . . and . . . . and I just wanna go home!"

Wembley burst into tears, and began crying into Red's shoulder. Red rubbed his back, and tried to get him to calm down a little.

"It's okay, Wembley," she said. "Just calm down, I'm gonna help you down from here. See? I've got a rope, and we're gonna use it to climb down."

"I . . . . I . . . . I don't know, Red. It's an awfully long way down . . . ."

"It'll be okay, Wembley! Look, I'll go down first, and then you follow me. I'll be right behind you. And the Fraggle Rock Volunteer Fire Department's down there, and they have a safety net all ready, just in case. Now, just follow me, and everything will be all right. Trust me."

"Well . . . . okay, Red."

Red took the rope, and began climbing down the side of the mountain, slowly.

"See, Wembley?" she asked. "It's not hard at all! Just don't let go of the rope, and don't look down, and everything will be fine!"

Wembley gulped, took hold of the rope, and slowly inched his own way down, keeping his eyes skyward, and gripping the rope as hard as he could. The other Fraggles were watching nervously. Gobo was practically twisting his tail in knots. Mokey and Lou were nervously holding each other's hands, nearly crushing them. Boober kept moaning.

"Easy does it, you guys!" Gobo called up to his friends.

"You're doing great, Wembley!" Red shouted, hoping she sounded encouraging. "Just take it slow . . . . that's it, nice and easy . . . . atta boy, that's that's the way!"

Wembley didn't respond. He was putting a lot of concentration into climbing down the mountain without falling and killing himself.

"Just don't look down!" Boober called out. "If you do, you'll fall and hit your head and crack your skull, and die, and then your brains might come leaking out of your ears all over the place."

"BOOBER!" the other Fraggles shouted.

"Sorry," Boober said, sheepishly. "Hey, Red! Wembley! Forget what I just said, okay?!"

"Oh, keep quiet, you stiff pickle!" the World's Oldest Fraggle shouted, giving Boober a bop in the nose with his cane. "You're not helping!"

"I said I was sorry," Boober mumbled, rubbing his nose. "Oooh, that's gonna leave a nasty mark!"

By this time, Red and Wembley were about halfway down the mountain. Felonious smiled sneakily.

"And the time is now right," he said. He wound up, and was about to throw the bottle, when Fink stopped him.

"Wait a minute, boss," he said. "I mean, if you're planning on hitting one of them with the bottle . . . ."

"I'm not planning on hitting one of them with the bottle, bean bag!" Felonious shouted, bopping Fink in the head with his fist.

"Then what're you gonna throw it for?"

"Watch and learn."

Felonious wound up again, and threw the bottle as hard as he could. It hit a rock on the side of the mountain, just a little bit above Red and Wembley, and smashed to pieces. The moss oil flowed down the mountain side, and also down the rope as well.

"Oooh!" Wembley grimaced. "Yuck! What's that smell?!"

"It smells like . . . ." Red said, but before she could finish her sentence, she began sliding down the rope, and she couldn't get a grip on the mountainside with her feet.

"Yiiiiiiipes!" she shouted. "Oh no! You know what this stuff is, Wembley?!"

"No, what?" Wembley asked, and he found himself having a hard time keeping his grip, as well.

"Felonious's moss oil! Oh brother, is this stiff slippery!"

"Yeah, I'll say it is!"

Though they tried, the two Fraggles couldn't hold onto the rope, or get their feet in any foot holds, due to the moss oil, and they wound up letting go, and falling. The entire group of Fraggles gasped.

"Oh no!" Mokey shouted.

"I can't look!" Boober yelled, covering his eyes.

"Fire Fraggles, get in position!" Gobo shouted. "And hurry!"

The fire Fraggles ran back and forth, trying to position themselves directly under Red and Wembley as they fell, so they would both hit the safety net. They did, but unfortunately, the net acted as a trampoline once Red and Wembley hit it, and they bounced right off of it. Red bounced to the left, and directly into the others, knocking them off their feet. Wembley bounced to the right, and would have smashed right into the ground, if someone hadn't caught him in the nick of time.

"Whew!" he shouted. "Thanks! For a minute there, I thought I was a gone . . . ."

Wembley stopped in mid-sentence and gasped as he looked up at his rescuer, and found out it was none other than Felonious Fraggle.

"No problem," he said, smiling sneakily. "Now then, let us be off, shall we? Nyah, hah, hah, hah, hah!"

"GOBO!" Wembley screamed at the top of his lungs. "RED! ANY FRAGGLE! HELP!"

"Shut up, you little trouble maker!" Felonious shouted, clamping his hand over Wembley's mouth. "You want to blow my cover?!"

Gobo, Red, and the others were just getting their senses back when they heard Wembley scream. When they saw Wembley in Felonious's clutches, Gobo was immediately on his feet.

"Hang on, Wembley!" he shouted, running toward Felonious, ready to tackle him.

"CHARRRRRGE!" Red shouted, and she and the other Fraggles took Gobo's lead, and ran for Felonious and Fink.

"Quick, Fink!" Felonious shouted, taking his bottle of premulosse extract out of his vest and handing it to his flunky. "Toss this at them Fraggles, and then let's am-scray!"

"Right, boss!" Fink shouted, and he hurled the bottle at the charging Fraggles. The minute he threw it, he and Felonious ran off.

The bottle of premulosse extract hit the ground, and broke, spilling liquid everywhere. The charging Fraggles immediately skid to a halt, to avoid slipping in it, and they all started coughing and gagging the fumes.

"Oh no!" Lou shouted, holding her nose. "They brought out the heavy artillery!"

"Ugh! More moss oil!" Red groaned.

"Felonious and Fink certainly know how to play dirty," Mokey said, stifling a yawn.

"Wait a minute!" Boober shouted, sniffing the air. "This isn't moss oil. It's . . . . oh no! Premulosse extract! Nobody breathe in!"

"Why not?" Lou asked, drowsily.

"Because it's a powerful anesthetic!" Boober shouted. "It's strong enough to knock out a Gorg! Don't . . . . breathe it . . . . iiiiiiinnnnnn . . . ."

Just as Boober finished his warning, he fell to the ground in a heap, and began snoring. But his warning wasn't going to do anyone any good. Every single Fraggle was out like a light.


	13. The Chase is On

With the rescue party incapacitated, Felonious and Fink made their getaway. Fink climbed onto his cycle, and began pedaling as fast as he could. Felonious sat down in his usual spot, and held a squirming and kicking Wembley on his lap, tightly.

"Sit still, you little ankle biter!" he shouted. "If you behave yourself, maybe I won't tie you up this time, okay, squirmy-wormy?"

Wembley stopped squirming immediately. Anything to keep from being tied up again! But Felonious still kept a hold on him. Wembley then realized the wagon was going to be getting too far ahead of Gobo and the others by the time they were able to come to their senses from the moss oil stench, and by then, they'd never be able to find him. He knew he had to leave a trail for them, but with what? He couldn't use the shiny rocks he dug up for Felonious. They were locked in the back of the wagon. It was then he noticed another bottle of moss oil sitting right next to Felonious, and he knew it was hard to miss the scent of that stuff! All he had to do was get to it. He first thought of kicking at the bottle, since his feet were pretty close to it, but then he decided against it, since he needed the bottle to be open, and he might accidentally kick the bottle right out of the wagon. The only way he was going to be able to open that bottle was to get Felonious to let go of him, and that wasn't very likely to happen, especially if he started squirming again. He had to try something else. Finally, he came up with an idea. He began coughing, and gasping for air, as if he couldn't breathe.

"What's the matter with you?" Felonious asked, giving him a weird look.

Wembley continued coughing and gasping, and he threw in a couple of choked sounding moans. Then he closed his eyes, and went limp, pretending to faint. Felonious let go of him immediately.

"Well, that was easy," he said. "If the kid's passed out, that makes him easier to handle."

Once Felonious had let go of Wembley, the green Fraggle quickly sat up, and punched Felonious in the stomach as hard as he could with his fist.

"Take that!" he shouted.

" _Ack_!" Felonious gasped, doubling over in pain, and coughing.

While Felonious was incapacitated, Wembley grabbed the bottle of moss oil, and yanked the stopper out of it. Before he had the chance to do anything else, Felonious grabbed him.

"Gotcha!" he shouted.

"Oh no!" Wembley yelled, as he dropped the bottle.

"A little wise guy, eh?" Felonious asked. He picked up the rope, which was laying by his feet, and immediately began tying Wembley up. "Well, I'll fix you! I'm just gonna have to tie you up to keep you out of trouble!"

"No, please don't!" Wembley shouted. "I won't try to escape again, honest I won't! I'll sit still, and I'll keep quiet, and I'll do whatever you say, just please, _please_ don't tie me up again!"

"Too late, kid," Felonious said, gagging Wembley with his handkerchief. "I tried to be nice. I gave you a chance, and you just blew it!"

Wembley began squirming again, desperately trying to break his bonds. Felonious growled, grabbed him by the front of his banana tree shirt, and held him at eye-level.

"That'll be enough of _that_!" he shouted. "This is your last warning, squirt! I've got a nice, heavy wrench in my toolbox underneath the seat, and it makes such a nice sound when it comes into contact with naughty little Fraggles' heads when they misbehave! You get my drift?"

Wembley gulped, and nodded. Being knocked out with premulosse extract had been bad enough, and he definitely did _not_ want to experience being knocked out with a wrench to his head, that was for sure!

"Good," Felonious said, putting Wembley down. "Now just sit there like a good little Fraggle, and everything will be just hunky-dory."

Wembley sighed, and sniffled a bit. He was about ready to start crying again, but he noticed something when he sniffled. He smelled the tell-tale scent of Felonious's moss oil. Felonious and Fink didn't appear to notice it, mostly because they were so used to it. He also listened carefully, and heard the sound of moss oil being spilled out of the bottle, as well as a faint thumping sound. He then realized what happened. When he dropped the bottle, it somehow managed to get stuck underneath the wagon, leaving the trail of moss oil Wembley had been hoping to leave. He began to relax, knowing that his friends would now be sure to find him.

Back at the mountain, the smell of premulosse extract was finally beginning to lift, and the Fraggles began coming to. Red was the first to get her wits back, and she ran in the direction the wagon went. Gobo followed after her.

"Red!" he called out. "Wait a minute!"

"No time to wait, Gobo!" Red shouted. "We've got to go after them!"

"Yeah, I know that, but we'll never be able to catch them!" Gobo shouted. "They're on wheels, remember?"

"I know, but all those rocks have got to make that wagon heavier to pull!" Red argued.

"Even still, it'll be hard for us to keep up with them even if we do catch up with them," Mokey said.

"We need some wheels of our own to catch them," Gobo said.

"But where are we going to get wheels all the way out here?" Boober asked.

Nobody had an answer to that. They began looking all over the cavern to see if they could come up with any ideas. Finally, Red saw a group of round rocks, with holes in the middle of them. Then she took two Doozer sticks out of her backpack, and stuck them through the holes of four rocks. Then she took a piece of rope, tied them all together, and then tied them to her feet. Then she rolled around in her make-shift roller skates.

"Whoo hoo!" she shouted. "I've done it!"

"Great idea, Red!" Mokey shouted, and she began to make her own make-shift roller skates. Some of the other Fraggles followed her lead.

"We'll be able to catch up with Felonious and Fink in no time now!" Gobo shouted.

"But there's still one problem," Boober said. "Which way did they go?"

Red's face fell. Boober _did_ have a point. It wouldn't do them any good to try to catch up with Felonious and Fink if they didn't know which way they went. Suddenly, Red sniffed the air. An extremely foul odor was emanating from one of the tunnels. She recognized it immediately.

"Hey!" she shouted. "I smell Felonious's moss oil! It's coming from over here! I'll bet they went this way!"

"You're right!" the World's Oldest Fraggle said. "I'd know that scent anywhere!"

"Follow me, everybody!" Red shouted, and she rolled off down the tunnel.

Gobo, Mokey, Lou, and the other Fraggles who had fashioned roller skates rolled after Red.

"Hey, Red!" Boober called out. "What do we do if those of us not on wheels lose you?"

"That's easy, Boober!" Red called back. "Just follow the smell!"

"Can't argue with that," Boober said, shrugging, and he and the other Fraggles who were going wheel-less began following Red and the other Fraggles who were on wheels.

Thanks to Red's makeshift roller skate idea, as well as Wembley's moss oil trail, the rescue party had managed to catch up with Felonious's wagon in no time.

"There they are!" Red shouted. "After them! Charrrrrrrrrge!"

"Yahoooooo!" Gobo called out.

"Wheeeeeee!" Mokey yelled.

"What the . . . ." Felonious said, hearing the sound of Fraggles behind his wagon. He turned to look, and then groaned.

"Oh brother!" he shouted. "Those darn Fraggles are following us! Get the led out, Fink!"

"Right, boss!" Fink shouted, and started to pedal faster, or at least he attempted to. All of those gems from Gemstone Grotto were weighing the wagon down quite considerably.

Wembley immediately began squirming again. He figured it would be a good time to try to escape, since Felonious was too busy watching Red, Gobo, and some of the other Fraggles behind him, and they were starting to get closer and closer to the wagon. He growled, and turned to Fink.

"Faster, you moron!" he demanded. " _Faster!_ "

"I'm going as fast as I can!" Fink shouted. "Those gems are making this thing heavy!"

"I don't want your excuses, slug snout! I want speed!"

Fink groaned, and began pedaling harder. Felonious turned his attention back to the gaggle of Fraggles chasing after the wagon.

"I don't get it," he said. "How'd they find us so quickly?"

"That's easy, Mr. Felonious!" Wembley shouted, as he managed to work his gag loose. "I used a bottle of your moss oil as a trail for my friends to follow!"

"You _what?!_ " Felonious shouted. "Why, you little, fuzzy, green, fungus! I oughta . . . ."

Felonious was about to reach down and strangle Wembley, but before he could, he noticed his wagon was slowing down, and then stopped. Fink was leaning over the handles of his cycle and panting heavily. He was extremely exhausted.

"What's the matter _now?_!" Felonious demanded.

"I can't go on, boss," Fink said. "If you want me to go any faster, we gotta lighten the load!"

"Lighten the load? You want I should lighten the load?"

"Yeah, boss. Lighten the load."

"Why, I'd be only too happy to lighten the load!"

Felonious then grabbed Fink by the back of his turtleneck, and flung him off the cycle as hard as he could. Fink landed on the ground with a loud thump. Then, Felonious jumped onto the cycle, and pedaled off as fast as he could, leaving Fink behind. Since Felonious was a lot stronger than Fink, the wagon practically took off like a shot.

"Gee, Mr. Felonious," Wembley said, "that wasn't very nice!"

"Shut up, you little pest!" Felonious shouted, backhanding Wembley across the face as hard as he could. The force of the blow knocked the little green Fraggle into the side of the wagon, and he banged his head. It wasn't hard enough to knock him out completely, but he was too dazed to move.

Fink was a bit dazed when he landed on the ground after Felonious threw him. He shook his head to regain his composure, stood up, and began running after Felonious.

"Hey boss!" he called out. "Wait for me!"

Fink was suddenly yanked to a stop, and crashed down on the ground, stomach first.

"Hey!" he shouted. "What gives?!"

Fink looked over his shoulder to see what had stopped him. It turned out to be Red. She had grabbed Fink's tail when he started to run after Felonious.

"Oh no you don't!" she shouted.

"Uh oh," Fink said, nervously. "I'm radish toast."

"I'll say you are!" Gobo shouted.

"Hey, listen!" Fink shouted. "It was all Felonious's idea! I didn't have nothin' to do with it! He's the one who kidnapped that little rock-rat, not me!"

"Save it for the Eminent and Venerable Council of Sages," Gobo said. He took a piece of rope out of his backpack, and used it to tie Fink's hands behind his back. "Pedley, you wait here until the others catch up with us, and watch this little fink of a Fraggle! The rest of us are going after Felonious!"

"You got it, Gobo!" Pedley shouted.

"Come on!" Red shouted. "We can't let Felonious escape! He's still got Wembley! And if he's willing to throw his own flunky off of his wagon to escape, I'm sure he won't have any qualms about chucking Wembley overboard, too!"

The other Fraggles agreed, and skated off after Felonious's wagon. The scent of moss oil was still strong, so they knew they wouldn't have much trouble finding it. They followed the scent to a tunnel, when Gobo stopped suddenly.

"Uh oh!" he shouted. As soon as he did, Mokey crashed into him, followed by Lou, Rumple, Morris, and several others. Red was the only Fraggle not involved in the pile up.

"What's the matter, Gobo?" she asked.

"I know where this tunnel leads," Gobo said.

"Where?" Mokey asked.

"Sinking Swamp!" Gobo shouted. "And this place could be dangerous! There are a lot of sharp turns and if you take one too fast . . . ."

"Don't explain anymore, Gobo," Red said. "We get the idea. We'll just have to be extremely careful. Let's move!"


	14. Sinking Swamp

Sinking Swamp was one place in Fraggle Rock no Fraggle dared to go, if they could help it. Most of it was made up of pools of muddy water, and if anyone ever fell into these pools, they would sink. That's why it was called Sinking Swamp. Felonious didn't seem to care about this fact. He continued pedaling, though he was starting to slow down a bit, due to the weight of his wagon. He looked over his shoulder, and saw Red, Gobo, and the other Fraggles gaining on him as well.

"Nobody's gonna take my treasure away from me!" he shouted.

Felonious began pedaling as fast as he could, though it wasn't easy. There was absolutely no way in the world he was going to leave his gems behind, even though it would have definitely been easier to just leave the wagon where it was, and run. As Felonious was pedaling, he saw a turn in the road. He sped up, determined to make that turn, and lose his pursuers. By this time, Wembley was starting to come out of his daze. He noticed Felonious heading for the turn, and gasped.

"Mr. Felonious, I don't think you should try to make that turn!" he shouted. "This wagon's too big, and too heavy to make it without it falling!"

"Shut your trap, you little runt!" Felonious shouted. "I know what I'm doing!"

Just as Wembley had predicted, when Felonious tried to make that sharp turn, the wagon tipped off the road, and fell down an embankment, directly into the mud, taking Felonious and Wembley with it. Gobo, Red, and the other Fraggles immediately skid to a halt the minute they saw the wagon fall.

"Wembley!" Mokey cried.

"Where is he?" Gobo asked.

"I don't see him!" Lou shouted.

Red immediately threw off her skates, and took off her backpack. She also practically ripped Gobo's backpack off, and began digging through it.

"Red, what are you doing?!" Gobo shouted.

Red didn't answer. She took another long piece of rope out of Gobo's backpack, and tied one end around her waist. She threw the other end to the other Fraggles.

"I'm going in!" she shouted.

"But you'll sink!" Mokey shouted.

"No I won't!" Red protested. "You guys pull me out as soon as I tug on the rope!"

"No, Red, you can't!" Gobo shouted. "It's too dangerous! I'll go down instead. After all, Wembley's my best friend, and . . . ."

"And _I'm_ the best swimmer in Fraggle Rock!" Red shouted. "You guys know I can swim through anything! I can swim through a pool full of radish gelatin!"

"She's right, Gobo," Mokey said. "She even tried it once."

"Plus, I can hold my breath under water longer than any Fraggle in the Rock!" Red shouted. "And you know it!"

"But Red . . . ." Gobo started.

"There's no time to argue about it, Gobo!" Lou shouted. "We have to get to Wembley before he drowns!"

"All right," Gobo said. "But be careful, Red!"

"Don't worry, I will," Red said, tightening the knot around her waist. "Just hold onto the rope, and be ready to pull us out!"

The other Fraggles nodded, and Red walked out to the edge of the embankment. She took a deep breath, and jumped.

"Geroni-Fraggle!" she shouted.

Red hit the water, and almost immediately jumped right back out. It was cold and slimy, and she really hated those conditions for swimming. But she knew she couldn't jump out at the moment. Instead, she used her tail as a propeller once she submerged, which allowed her to swim faster. She scanned the murky waters for Wembley. She found him pretty quickly. Luckily, he had a chance to take a deep breath before he submerged into the swamp, and was now trying to push himself to the surface, but he wasn't having much success, considering he was still tied up. Finally, he felt he couldn't hold his breath any longer, and he passed out. Red used her legs to thrust herself to him. She immediately grabbed him, and swam toward the surface as quickly as she could. She figured she would untie him once they got out of the water. The minute she surfaced with Wembley, he suddenly gagged, and began coughing up the muddy water.

"Take it easy, Wembley," Red said, tugging on the rope. "We'll be out of this soon, don't worry! Hey up there! Pull us out!"

"Let's go, everybody!" Gobo shouted. "Heave ho!"

Immediately, the Fraggles began pulling on the rope. Red used one hand to hold onto the rope and climb up the embankment, while using her other arm to hold onto Wembley. Once they reached dry land, Red gently put Wembley on the ground, and untied the rope from her waist. Wembley continued coughing and gasping for air.

"Wembley!" Gobo shouted, as he and Lou immediately began to untie him. "Wembley, are you all right?"

"Y-yeah, I . . . . I th-think so," Wembley said, coughing a bit. Then he began shivering, and his teeth began chattering. He thought the water had been colder than the Fraggle Pond when it froze over during the winter.

"You poor little thing!" Mokey shouted, as she took her blanket out of her backpack and wrapped it around Wembley so he could warm up.

"Th-th-thanks, Mokey," Wembley said.

"Come on, buddy," Gobo said, as he picked up the little green Fraggle. "Let's get you back home, eh?"

Wembley nodded. It was about all he could do, since he was so exhausted. Suddenly, he remembered something.

"Wait!" he shouted. "What about Mr. Felonious? What happened to him?"

"Oh my!" Mokey shouted. "I nearly forgot all about him!"

Immediately, Wembley jumped out of Gobo's arms, and ran back to the site where Felonious's wagon had fallen into the swamp. The others followed him. They saw the wagon half-submerged, and sinking quickly, and Felonious trying to pull sacks of gems out of the back of it.

"Mr. Felonious, are you okay?" Wembley called.

"If ya call being stuck in a sinking wagon okay," Felonious grumbled.

"It won't be long until that wagon sinks completely," Gobo said.

"And Felonious along with it," Lou said. "Especially if he keeps trying to pull those heavy sacks out."

"We have to help him!" Wembley shouted. "If we don't, he'll drown!"

" _What_?!" every single Fraggle shouted, and they stared at Wembley as if he were crazy.

"Wembley, are you _nuts_?!" Red shouted. "After everything he's done to you, you still want to _save_ him?! I say let him drown!"

"But if we don't help him, that'll only make us just as bad as him," Wembley said. "Wouldn't it?"

The other Fraggles began looking at each other, in complete silence. They didn't quite know what to say. But they all agreed on one thing. Wembley _did_ have a point about leaving Felonious to drown.

"I _hate_ it when he's right," Red grumbled.

"Okay, Wembley," Gobo said, with a sigh. "We'll help Felonious. Even though I'll probably regret it. Go get the rope, Red."

Red sighed, and went to get the rope. She didn't want to do this, but she knew she had to. Once she got it, she lowered it down.

"Hey, Felonious!" she shouted. "Grab onto the rope!"

"We're gonna pull you up!" Gobo shouted.

Felonious grabbed three of his sacks of gems, and then he grabbed the rope. The Fraggles pulled on it as hard as they could, but the sacks made it much too heavy. As they were pulling, the rope snapped, and Felonious fell back into the swamp, and the momentum caused the Fraggles to fall backwards off their feet.

"What kinda rescue was that supposed to be?!" Felonious shouted.

"Don't worry, Mr. Felonious, we'll try again!" Wembley shouted, as Gobo grabbed the ropes that Felonious used to tie up Wembley.

"Only this time, come up _without_ those sacks!" Red shouted.

"Are you crazy?!" Felonious shouted. "Come up without my treasure?! What kind of a fool do you think I am?!"

"I don't know, what kind are you?" Red asked.

"Very funny," Felonious said, sarcastically. "Har, har, har!"

"Just grab onto the rope, Felonious," Mokey said, "and we'll get you out of there! We promise!"

"Not without my gems, you ain't!" Felonious shouted.

"They're too heavy for us to pull out of there!" Gobo shouted. "Come on, forget those rocks, and grab the rope!"

"Not on your life, furball!" Felonious shouted. "I ain't leaving without my gems!"

"Maybe if you tie the sacks to the rope, we can pull them up first," Mokey suggested.

"You out of your head?!" Felonious shouted. "If I do that, you'll run off with my treasure and leave me here to sink!"

"We wouldn't do that, Mr. Felonious!" Wembley shouted. "Honest we wouldn't! We just want to help you!"

"Yeah, right," Felonious said. "You just want to help yourselves to my riches, you mean! Not a chance, kid!"

"But if you don't climb out of there, you could drown!" Wembley shouted.

"I ain't leaving without my gems!" Felonious yelled.

"Come on, Felonious, this is ridiculous!" Gobo shouted. "What's more important? A bunch of shiny rocks or your life?!"

Felonious was about to respond, when he realized Gobo had a point there. And his wagon, along with his sacks of gems, were beginning to sink faster, and him along with them. But did he _really_ want to give up all those gems? He thought this one over a little.

"Well?" Red asked.

"I'm thinking, I'm thinking!" Felonious shouted.

"Come _on_ , Felonious!" Red shouted, impatiently. "We don't have all day!"

"Forget it!" Felonious shouted. "After all I had to go through to get these gems, you think I'm just gonna throw them away?! You Fraggles have gotta be outta your heads! You don't understand the first thing about riches and wealth! These rocks are gonna make me rich, and I ain't about to give 'em up! And furthermore . . . . _glub, glub, glub, glub_. . . ."

Felonious had just realized during his rant, his wagon and his treasure had sank, and he was going down with them. He had almost gone completely under. When he realized this, he managed to pull his head to the surface.

"On the other hand," he said. "HELP!"

Gobo lowered the rope a little further down the embankment, and Felonious grabbed it. He began climbing it while the Fraggles pulled. The minute Felonious was on the embankment, he looked down, and saw his wagon and all his gems disappear to the bottom of the swamp. He stared at the spot for a moment or so, and then immediately began sobbing hysterically, and loudly.

"My treasure!" he wailed. "All of my treasure! Gone! Gone forever! All that work for nothing!"

"Cheer up, Mr. Felonious," Wembley said, patting the con Fraggle on the back. "At least you're still alive!"

Felonious stopped his blubbering immediately, and turned toward Wembley. He glared at the little green Fraggle, and lunged at him, ready to wrap his fingers around his little green neck, and strangle him.

"Why you miserable little . . . ." he began.

Wembley immediately ran to Mokey, and tried to hide behind her. Mokey wrapped her arms around Wembley, protectively, as Red jumped in front of Felonious, and pushed him back a little.

"Okay, okay!" she shouted. "That's enough of _that_ , buster!"

"Why don't you butt out?!" Felonious shouted. "This is all your fault, you know! If you hadn't butted in at Gemstone Grotto, and let me use your stupid little friend, none of this would have happened, you know! I'd still have my riches!"

"Yeah, and you still would've had Wembley in your clutches, too!" Red shouted. "You wouldn't have let him go even if I hadn't butted in at Gemstone Grotto that first time!"

"You think you're so smart, dontcha? Well, you don't know nothin'! Just like a girl! Girls don't know nothin'!"

Red glared at Felonious, and punched him right in the face as hard as she could, not only knocking him off his feet, but also giving him a black eye. Then she began repeatedly bopping him on the head with her fist, when the World's Oldest Fraggle grabbed her arm.

"See here, young lady!" he shouted. "This kind of behavior is very unbecoming of a young Fraggle!"

"But he . . . ." Red started.

"Now, now," the World's Oldest Fraggle said. "You let me take care of the likes of him!"

"Oh, all right," Red said, grudgingly.

The World's Oldest Fraggle then pulled Felonious to his feet, and then smiled sneakily.

"I've been waiting a long time for this," he said, rubbing his hands together gleefully. Then he began hitting Felonious on the head with his cane as hard as he possibly could, repeatedly.

"Take that!" he shouted. "And that! And that, and that, and that!"

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" Felonious shouted. "Hey, watch it, will ya?!"

"Excuse me, your oldness," Henchy said, "but didn't you just say that sort of behavior was unbecoming of a young Fraggle?"

"I know that!" the World's Oldest Fraggle shouted, bopping Henchy in the nose. "But I ain't a young Fraggle!"

The other Fraggles laughed. Red took a piece of the snapped rope and tied Felonious's hands behind his back, like they had done with Fink earlier. Then they started to lead the two con Fraggles back to Fraggle Rock.

"I told you we shoulda gone back to the moss oil business," Fink said.

"Shaddap!" Felonious shouted, and tried to hit his flunky, but he realized he couldn't.

"Hey, Woffy, could ya do me a favor?" he asked.

"What's that?" the World's Oldest Fraggle asked.

"Bop this binooni berry brain in the head for me, would ya?"

The World's Oldest Fraggle nodded, and bopped Fink in the head with his cane as hard as he could.

"Thank you," Felonious said.

"Happy to oblige," the World's Oldest Fraggle said, and he bopped Felonious in the head. "And don't call me Woffy!"

Felonious groaned, as the World's Oldest Fraggle kept bopping both him, and Fink, in the head with his cane, all the way back to Fraggle Rock.


	15. The Trial

Red immediately wanted to bring Felonious and Fink before the Venerable and Eminent Council of Sages when they returned to Fraggle Rock, though Gobo didn't think that was such a good idea.

"What do you _mean_ it's not such a good idea?!" Red shouted. "We _have_ to put Felonious and Fink on trial! I mean, you and I both know they're guilty, but I don't want to be accused of not giving a Fraggle a fair trial!"

"Shhh!" Gobo hissed. "Quiet, Red, you'll wake up Wembley!"

Gobo had insisted on carrying Wembley back to Fraggle Rock, and Wembley was too tired to object. He had fallen asleep the minute Gobo picked him up, and was still snuggled against his best friend's shoulder as they returned home.

"The poor little guy's exhausted," Gobo said. "That's why I don't think we should call the council right away. Wembley's had a long, hard couple of days, and he needs to rest. The Sages might want him to be a witness, and he's in no condition to testify at a trial!"

"I know, but if we put it off too long, Felonious and Fink might find a way to escape! Besides, if the Sages see how exhausted Wembley is, it may help our case."

"I don't know, Red."

"But, Gobo, we might not even _need_ Wembley's testimony! After all, you and I both saw Felonious and Fink kidnap Wembley! Not to mention half the rock saw him do it a second time, too."

"That's true. But we don't know what they put Wembley through! And like I said, Wembley is in no shape to testify!"

"But you know they're sneaky! What if we put them in a cage, and then they managed to talk to Feenie?"

Gobo thought that one over. Feenie was probably the dumbest Fraggle in the Rock, and even more gullible than Wembley! Felonious would be able to talk Feenie into letting them go in two seconds.

"Okay," he said, giving in. "If you're sure we can do this without Wembley."

"I'm positive!"

The minute the Fraggles returned to Fraggle Rock, Gobo took Wembley back to their cave and put him to bed so he could rest, while Red called for the Venerable and Eminent Council of Sages. According to Fraggle tradition, the first three Fraggles that arrive at the Council chamber make up the Venerable and Eminent Council of Sages for the session. The first one to arrive was Lambo Fraggle, the second to arrive was Hambo Fraggle, and the third to arrive was Mona Fraggle, though she fell asleep the minute she got there. They took their positions, and called the session to order, by holding each other's noses and humming.

"Okay, now that we've got everybody in order," Lambo said. "We can get down to business! Once we hear both sides of the story, the World's Oldest Fraggle will pass sentence! What's the charge?"

"Oh omnipotent Venerable and Eminent Council of Sages," Red said, "I called you here today because we need to give Felonious and Fink Fraggle a fair trial, even though they're guilty, and the World's Oldest Fraggle should throw the book at them anyway!"

"Red, calm down," Cerise said. "Remember, everyone is innocent until proven guilty."

"Glad to see someone on our side," Felonious said. Then he smirked at Cerise, and gave her a wink. "Thanks, Reesie, baby!"

"I'm not on your side, creep!" Cerise shouted, slapping Felonious in the face. "I think you're definitely guilty! The whole Rock knows you're guilty! We're just giving you a fair trial because that's how we do things! And don't _ever_ call me Reesie!"

"Struck out with Cerise again, huh, boss?" Fink asked. "Just like the last time we were here, when you took her up to Kissing Chasm. It didn't workout too well then, either. Too bad. You always thought she was a cute little tomato. I don't get why she doesn't like ya."

"Shaddap!" Felonious shouted, and bopped Fink in the head.

"Mom, you didn't tell me _that_!" Red shouted, making a face. "Eee _uuuuwwww_! What a revolting thought! If you _did_ fall for him, Felonious Fraggle could've been my father! Wait a minute . . . . he _isn't_ , is he?! Oh yuck!"

"No, Red," Cerise said. " _Def_ initely not! There is _no way_ in the _world_ I'd get involved with such a slimy slug like him! Believe me, Felonious Fraggle is _not_ your father!"

"That's a relief," Red said, heaving a sigh.

"I hate to interrupt," Hambo said. "But can we get on with this trial? What's the charge?"

"Two counts of kidnapping, and one count of forced labor!" Red shouted. "They kidnapped Wembley Fraggle, and forced him to dig rocks out of Gemstone Grotto! Then when we caught up with them, and rescued Wembley, they kidnapped him again before we had a chance to even come back here to Fraggle Rock!"

"Oooooooohhhhhhhh!" the Sages shouted in unison.

"That's even worse than the time you came to us accusing Mokey Fraggle of stealing your radish bars!" Lambo shouted. "Felonious and Fink Fraggle, how do you plead?!"

"Not guilty," Felonious said.

"Not guilty?" Fink asked. "How can you say that, boss? You know we did it, and you know they caught us red-handed! How can you say we didn't do it when you know we did do it?"

"Shaddap!" Felonious shouted, bopping Fink on the head. "Let me do all the talking, banana beak!"

"Now then!" Lambo shouted. "Red, the last time you came to us, you admitted you did not actually see Mokey steal your radish bars! Now this time, did you actually see the crime take place?"

"Yes!" Red shouted. "Both Gobo and I witnessed the kidnapping!"

"Is that true, Gobo?" Hambo asked.

"That's right, your Eminent-nesses," Gobo said, standing up. "We saw Felonious and Fink kidnap Wembley all right! Well, sort of."

"Sort of?" Lambo asked. "What do you mean sort of?"

"Well, all we saw was Wembley call us from Felonious's wagon," Gobo said. "We heard him yell for help and then we saw Felonious cover his mouth and pull him into his wagon."

"He went with us willingly, your sage-ness!" Felonious shouted. "We did _not_ kidnap him!"

"Well, we all saw you guys take him from the Crumbling Cliffs!" Gobo shouted. "And he definitely _didn't_ go with you willingly that time!"

"How do you know that?!" Felonious asked.

"Because Wembley wouldn't have screamed for help at the top of his lungs!" Gobo shouted.

"Oh yeah?!"

"Yeah!"

This started a shouting match between Gobo and Felonious, both yelling at once.

"Order, order!" Lambo shouted.

"I'll have a grilled radish sandwich and a radish shake!" Feenie shouted. The World's Oldest Fraggle bopped him with his cane.

"You're out of order!" he shouted. Then he banged his cane on the rock as hard as he could.

"THAT'S ENOUGH, YOU TWO!" he screamed at the top of his lungs at Gobo and Felonious. The two Fraggles immediately stopped yelling at each other, returned to their seats, glared at each other, and growled.

"That's better," the World's Oldest Fraggle said. "Now then, most of us know Felonious and Fink are two of the most rotten Fraggles ever born! Those of us who remember the Great Baldness, that is."

"What's the Great Baldness?" Lambo asked.

"I dunno," Hambo asked. "But with a name like Felonious, he has _got_ to be guilty! Guilty, guilty, guilty, _guilty_!"

Nearly the entire Council chamber exploded in voices, agreeing with the verdict.

"Order please!" Lambo shouted. "Order, order I say! Order!"

"QUIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEET!" the World's Oldest Fraggle hollered. Everyone in the room immediately quieted down.

"Now then," Lambo said, "Red and Gobo said say the kidnapping take place, but Felonious says Wembley went with them willingly. What about the forced labor part of the story?"

"Never happened," Felonious said.

"You liar!" Red shouted. "Wembley told us you made him dig those rocks out of Gemstone Grotto!"

"You got proof?" Felonious asked.

"Sure, Wembley said so!" Gobo said. "He's my best friend, and I believe him! He wouldn't lie to me!"

"He wouldn't lie, period!" Red shouted.

"What do you think?" Hambo asked.

"I think it's a lot of he said, she said," Lambo said. "I don't think we can take Red's word for it, if she wasn't there. Same with Gobo, since he wasn't there, either.."

" _What_?!" Red shouted. "But . . . . but we _saw_ Felonious kidnap Wembley, and Wembley _told_ us they forced him to . . . ."

"But still, you weren't there," Lambo asked. "Where's Wembley now?"

"Resting," Gobo said. "He was so exhausted when we were coming back from Sinking Swamp, I didn't think he'd be up to testify."

"Well, unless he testifies," Lambo said, "we'll have to dismiss the case against Felonious and Fink Fraggle."

"Too bad," Hambo sighed. "I've been waiting forever to pronounce someone guilty, too."

"But _why_?!" Red shouted. "Gobo and I saw them! Shouldn't that be enough to convict them?"

"There's the discrepancy in your stories," Lambo said. "You and Gobo say Wembley was kidnapped, and Felonious says he went with him of his own free will. And since Wembley was involved in this, and you two weren't, he's going to have to tell his side of the story."

"How long will you give me to go get him?" Red asked.

"Five minutes," Lambo said.

"I'll be right back!" Red shouted.

"Aww, must you?" Felonious asked. "It seems like such a shame to wake the poor little guy up just for this. I'm in no hurry. We can wait until after the little fella's had his little afternoon nappy."

Red glared at Felonious, and left the Council chamber. Exactly five minutes later, she returned with an extremely groggy Wembley, propped up on her arm. He looked like he was about ready to drop.

"Okay, Wembley," Red said. "Here we are, at the Council chamber. Now all you have to do is tell the Venerable and Eminent Council of Sages what Felonious and Fink did to you."

"Right," Wembley said, stifling a yawn. "Felonk and Finkonious."

Lambo and Hambo looked at each other, and then they looked at Wembley, who could barely stand up at this point.

"You _sure_ he's up to this?" Hambo asked. "He looks terrible!"

"He's just a little tired from his ordeal, your venerablenesses," Red said.

"Wembley Fraggle!" Lambo shouted.

"Present!" Wembley shouted, raising his hand.

"Hmmmm . . . ." Lambo said. "Well, let's swear him in."

"Right," Hambo said. "Wembley Fraggle, repeat after me. I, state your name . . . ."

"I, state your name . . . ." Wembley repeated, and then he began giggling like crazy. "Hey! That's funny! See what I did there?"

"Wembley Fraggle, please be serious!" Lambo shouted. "Do you know this is a serious case?"

"No, but if you hum a few bars, I'll fake it!" Wembley shouted, then he exploded into a fit of laughter. "Get it? Hum a few bars and I'll fake it! That's a good one!"

"Ho boy," Boober said.

"I think we're home free, Fink," Felonious said. "The kid's too punchy to give a straight answer!"

"Wembley, focus!" Gobo shouted.

"Oh hi, Gobo," Wembley said. "What's new?"

"Wembley Fraggle," Lambo said. "Can you positively identify Felonious and Fink Fraggle?"

"Hmmm?" Wembley asked. "Oh yeah. Right."

Wembley then staggered over to Felonious and Fink, and stared at them. Then he got right into Felonious's face, until their noses were touching. Wembley then turned to the Sages.

"Never saw 'em before in my life!" he shouted. "All six of 'em!"

And with that, Wembley fell to the floor with a thud.

"Oh, Wembley, Wembley, _Wem_ bley!" Red groaned, smacking her hand over her eyes and shaking her head.

"I _knew_ this wasn't a good idea!" Gobo shouted. "He's too groggy to even think straight!"

"This doesn't look good," Mokey said. "If Wembley doesn't snap out of it, Felonious will get away with his crimes!"

"I know what will help!" Boober shouted, and he ran out of the Council chamber as fast as he could.

"We're going to try this one more time," Lambo said. "Wembley Fraggle, were you, or were you not kidnapped by Felonious Fraggle?"

"Nap?" Wembley asked. "No thanks, I just had one."

"That's all," Lambo said. "If he can't give us a coherent answer, then I'm afraid we'll have to dismiss the case."

Felonious looked over at Gobo and Red and smirked. Red wanted to slap that smirk right off his face. She couldn't believe what was happening. Just as the Sages were about to dismiss the case, Boober ran into the Council chamber, carrying something in his hand.

"Here, Wembley!" he shouted. "This bleach nut ought to clear your brain!"

With that, Boober threw his bleach nut on the ground in front of Wembley. It practically exploded into a gaseous mess. Wembley began choking on the vapors and jumped to his feet immediately.

"Ack! Ick! Aaagghhh!" he coughed. "Ooooh! Boober, what'd you do that for?! You know I can't stand the smell of your bleach nuts!"

"Sorry, Wembley," Boober said. "But it was the only way to wake you up!"

"Come on, Wembley!" Red shouted, as she ran over to Wembley to steady him. "You have to testify against Felonious and Fink!"

"Oh, right!" Wembley shouted. "Right. Yeah. Okay, I'm ready now."

"All right, Wembley Fraggle," Lambo said. "Felonious and Fink claim that you went with them willingly. Is that true?"

"Well, at first, I _did_ go with them willingly," Wembley said. "Mr. Felonious said that Red was hurt, and that Gobo had sent him and Fink to get me, and they were gonna take me to Red, but then I saw Gobo and Red on the path and said that Mr. Felonious could let me off, but he didn't."

Wembley then went on to explain the entire situation from beginning to end. Even _think_ ing about it made him tired!

"Every day, he'd make me dig these shiny rocks out of Gemstone Grotto," he said. "All day, too! He wouldn't even let me take a break, not even to play!"

"What?!" both Lambo and Hambo shouted in unison.

"Oooooh, that's cruel and unusual!" Hambo shouted.

"He only let me stop right before it got dark out," Wembley went on. "And then, when I was done, he'd tie me up, and throw me in the back of his wagon. I only did it because he said he'd let me go when I dug out all the rocks. Then I _did_ dig out all the rocks, and he said he wasn't gonna let me go, even though I wanted to go home, and he knew I wanted to go home, too."

"I think we've heard enough," Lambo said.

"We certainly have," Hambo said. "Excuse us for a moment."

Hambo and Lambo then huddled and whispered (Mona was still asleep). Wembley walked over to where Red and Gobo were sitting.

"Did I do better that time?" he asked.

"You did great," Gobo said, patting his best friend on the shoulder. Finally, the Eminent and Venerable Council of Sages came out of their huddle.

"Ladies and gentle-Fraggles!" Lambo shouted. "We find Felonious and Fink Fraggle . . . ."

"Guilty as charged!" Hambo shouted, excitedly. "Whee-heeeeee! I've always wanted to say that!"

"Felonious and Fink Fraggle!" the World's Oldest Fraggle shouted. "I hereby banish you from Fraggle Rock for good!"

"So what else is new?" Felonious asked. "You did that to us the last time we were here, too! And we came back. And we'll come back again!"

"Oh no you won't!" Red shouted. "You guys aren't getting off _that_ easy! Your oldness, may I be the one to banish these two? I have an idea where to take them so they'll think twice about coming back!"

"Very well, young Fraggle!" the World's Oldest Fraggle shouted. "You may have the honor!"

"Thank you," Red said. "Okay, you two. March!"

Red started to march Felonious and Fink out of the Council chamber and down to one of the tunnels. Several other Fraggles followed her, curious to see what Red had in mind. Finally, they came out in (of all places) the Gorgs' garden.

"Here you guys are," Red said. "Your new home. There are plenty of radishes and other vegetables here, so you won't starve. Just remember. You ever think about coming back to Fraggle Rock again, and you'll be sorry!"

With that, Red and the other Fraggles that followed began leaving. Felonious watched them go, and glared. He noticed they didn't block the entrance where they came out, but he didn't want to take any chances of going back in and being seen right away.

"What do we do now, boss?" Fink asked.

"I don't know," Felonious said. "But let me tell ya something, Fink! That little green rock-rat's gonna be sorry, and so's that girl Red! We're gonna get back to Fraggle Rock one day, and when we do . . . ."

"Ooooh, Fwaggles!" a large voice shouted. Felonious had been so busy ranting, he hadn't noticed a huge shadow looming over him, and Fink.

"Huh?" he asked, looking upward. There was Junior Gorg standing over them, holding his thumping stick. Felonious and Fink weren't too familiar with Gorgs, since they had never left underground before. This was the first time either of them had ever seen one.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" they screamed, and ran off as fast as they could.

"Come back here, you Fwaggles!" Junior shouted, slamming his thumping stick into the ground at Felonious and Fink. Gobo and Red had been watching the whole thing play out.

"Well, that ought to keep them busy for awhile," Red said.

"Don't you think that was a little mean, though?" Gobo asked.

"Yeah, I know, but how else are we gonna keep those two out of Fraggle Rock?"

Red began to head back to the Great Hall. Gobo thought about what she had said, shrugged, and followed after her.


	16. Lessons Learned

The minute Red got back to the Great Hall, she immediately began planning a Welcome-Home party for Wembley. She got Boober busy cooking the food for it, and told Mokey to start decorating. Then she began running around telling every Fraggle she saw about it. Gobo just shook his head and sighed.

"That's Red for you," he said. "Always in the mood for a party."

"Yeah," Wembley said, stifling a yawn.

"But I can kind of agree with her, here. We've got a lot to celebrate, after all! You're back home where you belong, and we don't have Felonious and Fink to worry about anymore, eh?"

"Mm hmm. Right."

"You okay, Wembley?"

"Oh, I'm fine, Gobo. I'm just kinda sleepy."

"Yeah, and I don't blame you one bit. Maybe you should skip the party."

"Skip the party?!" Red shouted. She had been passing by when she heard Gobo say that. "Now how can the guest of honor skip his own party?"

"Easy," Gobo said. "He's still tired from all the excitement that happened, right, Wembley?"

Gobo didn't get a response. He looked down at his little green friend, and found that he had fallen asleep right then and there on the floor of the Great Hall.

"Tired would be an understatement, wouldn't it?" Red asked. "Poor little fella."

"Let's just put him to bed, and let him get some rest," Gobo said. "We'll have his party when he's feeling better."

Gobo picked up Wembley, and he carried him to their cave. Red followed to help. When they got there, Gobo climbed the ladder to Wembley's bed, and managed to get Wembley into it without waking him up, and without dropping him for that matter. Red got out Wembley's nightshirt, and passed it up the ladder to Gobo.

"Think he's okay?" Red asked. "I mean, I've never been this tired before."

"You've never spent three days straight digging for rocks before," Gobo pointed out, as he changed Wembley out of his banana tree shirt and into his nightshirt. Then he tucked the green Fraggle in, and climbed down the ladder.

"We'd better go cancel the party," he said. "Come on, Red."

Red nodded, and was about to follow Gobo, when she heard Wembley stirring.

"Red?" he asked, yawning.

"Yeah, Wembley?" Red asked. "Whatcha need?"

"I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry," Wembley said.

"Sorry for what?"

"For not listening to you about talking to strange Fraggles. Maybe if I had, this wouldn't have happened."

"Wembley, it wasn't your fault. Felonious tricked you. And he used a mean and rotten trick, too!"

"Well, I promise, I'll never _ever_ do it again! When I escaped from Mr. Felonious, I ran into another strange Fraggle who said he wanted to help me, and I didn't go with him that time! You would have been proud of me!"

"Oh boy . . . ."

Red stood there for a few moments, trying to think about what she was going to say.

"Wembley," she said, finally, as she climbed the ladder up to Wembley's bed. "Remember when I told you my mother always told me never to talk to strange Fraggles? Well, I forgot to tell you something important that she told me about that subject."

"What's that?" Wembley asked.

"Well, see, most Fraggles are nice, and they're not at all like Felonious and Fink. And, sometimes, if you're in trouble, or lost, or you need help, then it's perfectly okay to talk to a strange Fraggle."

"But Red, how do you know who's a good Fraggle, and who's a bad Fraggle?"

"Well . . . . sometimes, you don't. At least not right away. I knew Felonious and Fink were bad news, because whenever I saw them, I would get this icky feeling in my stomach, that I never got before whenever I came across any other Fraggle I didn't know. Didn't you feel anything funny about them?"

Wembley thought about that for a minute. Then he shook his head.

"Not really," he said. "Except when they offered me radish candy, I was thinking maybe it wasn't a good idea to go with them. I guess I should have trusted my first feelings, huh?"

"Right," Red said.

"Okay. Next time, I'll know."

"I'm just glad they'll be a next time. Now, you get some rest, and we'll come back and check on you later, and we'll get Boober to make you some peach and pepper pottage, some turnip toast, and maybe some radish bar cake a little later, okay?"

"Okay."

Wembley yawned, closed his eyes, and almost immediately fell asleep. Red tucked him in, patted his shoulder, and then climbed down the ladder. When she left the cave, she found Gobo waiting for her.

"He okay?" Gobo asked.

"Yeah, he's fine," Red said. "He'll probably be asleep for a couple of hours, though."

"If not for a couple of days. Come on, let's go tell the others the party's being postponed."

"Right. At least Wembley learned something from this."

"I learned something, too. I should have listened to you when you first told me about Felonious and Fink. From now on, Red, I promise, I'll believe you whenever you tell me anything."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

"Good. Because you've got something on your shirt."

"Really? Where?"

Gobo looked down at his shirt to see what Red meant. The minute he looked down, Red flicked him on the nose.

"Whoo hoo hoo hoo!" she laughed, and then ran off.

"Hey!" Gobo shouted, chasing after her. "You come back here, Red!"

As Gobo was chasing Red through the Great Hall, Mokey and Boober watched them.

"Well," Mokey said, "at least everything is back to normal."

"Normal for us Fraggles, anyway," Boober said, shrugging.

The End

* * *

 _AUTHOR'S NOTE: Forgive the preachiness of this chapter, but I felt I had to do it. I also wound up posting this story before I was finished writing it, and so I forgot to mention some things in my first Author's Note. Tan Fraggle, the Crumbling Cliffs and Sinking Swamp are my own creations. Mona Fraggle is based on the third Eminent Venerable Sage from the episode "Red Handed and the Invisible Thief." I made up the name because the episode never mentioned what it was._


End file.
